Gillespie (surname)

Gillespie (/ɡɪˈlɛspi/ ghil-ESP-ee) is both a masculine given name and a surname in the English language. Variants include Gillaspie and Gillispie.

## Origins

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The given name is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic Gille Easbaig (also rendered Gilleasbaig), meaning "bishop's servant".[1] The surname Gillespie is an Anglicised form of the Scottish Gaelic Mac Gille Easbuig, and the Irish Mac Giolla Easpaig, both of which mean "bishop's servant's son".[2] The given name itself is derived from a word of Latin origin,[3] the Old Irish epscop being derived from the Latin episcopus.[4]

An early example of the name in Scotland occurs in a charter dated 1175-1199, recording a certain "Ewano filio Gillaspeck".[3][5] In Ireland, a family bearing the surname occupied the office of toísech of Clann Aílebra in the late twelfth century.[6] In 1172, for example, the toísech was slain by Donn Slébe Ua hEochada, King of Ulster. This slain Mac Gilla Espuic may be identical to a certain Gilla Óengusa mac Gilla Espuic, rechtaire of the Monaig of Ulster, who is earlier recorded in the king's service.[7] Whatever the case, a later family bearing the surname appears on record as erenaghs of Kilraine in County Donegal. During the 16th and 17th centuries in Ireland, the surname was most common in Ulster.[6] During the nineteenth century in Ireland, the surname was most numerous in the counties of Antrim, Donegal, Armagh, and Tyrone.[8] Scottish Gaelic forms of the surname include GillEasbuig[9] and GillEasbaig.[10]

## Gillespie

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* A. Arnold Gillespie (1899–1978), American cinema special effects artist
* Aaron Gillespie (born 1983), American rock singer & drummer
* Alastair Gillespie (1922-2018), Canadian politician
* Albert Gillespie (1912–1938), Australian cricketer and Royal Air Force officer
* Archibald H. Gillespie (1810–1873), officer in the United States Marine Corps
* Bill Gillespie (journalist) (born 1946), Canadian journalist and author
* Bill Gillespie (politician) (1928–2008), American politician
* Bill Gillespie (footballer) (1887–1927), Australian footballer
* Billy Gillespie (1891–1981), Irish football (soccer) player
* Bobby Gillespie (born 1962), Scottish rock and roll musician
* Brock Gillespie (born 1982), American expatriate basketball player
* Charles Gillespie (1883–1964), New Zealand rugby union player and soldier
* Charles A. Gillespie Jr. (1935–2008), American diplomat
* Charlie Gillespie (born 1998), Canadian actor and singer
* Collin Gillespie (born 1999), American basketball player
* Craig Gillespie (born 1967), Australian film director
* Dan Gillespie Sells (born 1979), English singer
* Dana Gillespie (born 1949), British actress and singer
* Daniel Gillespie (1938–2017), American physicist
* Darlene Gillespie (born 1941), Mousketeer born in Canada
* David Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
* Dean M. Gillespie (1884–1949), American politician
* Dizzy Gillespie (1917–1993), American jazz musician
* Earl Gillespie (1922–2003), American sportscaster
* Ed Gillespie (born 1961), American politician
* Floris Gillespie (1882–1967), Scottish painter
* Gary Gillespie (born 1960), Scottish footballer
* George Gillespie (1613–1648), Scottish theologian
* George Lewis Gillespie Jr. (1841–1913), US Army officer
* Gina Gillespie (born 1951), American former child actress, now an attorney
* Gregor Gillespie (born 1987), 4x NCAA Division 1 All-American Wrestler
* Haven Gillespie (1888–1975), American composer and lyricist
* Jacqueline Pascarl-Gillespie (born 1963), Australian author
* James Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
* Janetta Gillespie (1876–1956), Scottish artist
* Jason Gillespie (born 1975), Australian cricketer
* John Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
* John Smith Gillespie (1820 - 1903) Founding pastor of Broadway Baptist Church of Fort Worth, Texas
* Joseph Gillespie (1809–1885), American politician
* Keith Gillespie (born 1975), Northern Irish footballer
* Kevin Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
* Margaret V. Gillespie (born 1969), American politician
* Mark Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
* Michael Allen Gillespie (born 1951), American philosopher and social scientist
* Mike Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
* Mitch Gillespie (born 1959), American politician
* Norm Gillespie, association football coach in Australia in the 1940s
* Nick Gillespie (born 1963), American editor and political writer
* Paul Gillespie (1920–1970), Major League Baseball catcher
* Phillip Gillespie (born 1975), Australian cricket umpire
* Robert Gillespie (born 1933), British actor, director and writer
* Ronald Gillespie (1924–2021), Canadian chemist
* Rosemary Gillespie (1941-2010), Australian lawyer and activist
* Rosemary Gillespie (biologist), Scottish-born American biologist
* Ross Gillespie (1935–2023), New Zealand hockey player
* Steven Gillespie (born 1985), English footballer
* Stuart Gillespie (born 1957), New Zealand cricketer
* Thomas Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
* Tyree Gillespie (born 1998), American football player
* William Gillespie (disambiguation), several people

### Fictional characters

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* Alessa Gillespie and Dahlia Gillespie, in the Silent Hill video game series
* Chief Bill Gillespie, in the novel In the Heat of the Night and its film and television adaptations
* Dr. Leonard Gillespie, in the Dr. Kildare and Dr. Gillespie film series
* Rudy Gillespie, on the television series Kickin' It

## Gillaspie

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* Conor Gillaspie (born 1987), American baseball player
* Kayne Gillaspie (born 1979), American fashion designer
* Logan Gillaspie (born 1997), American baseball player

## Gillispie

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* Billy Gillispie (born 1959), American basketball coach
* Charles Coulston Gillispie (1918–2015), American historian of science
* Connor Gillispie (born 1997), American baseball player

## See also

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* Tara Gilesbie, author of My Immortal
* Gillespie (disambiguation)

## References

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1. ^ Hanks, P; Hardcastle, K; Hodges, F (2006). A Dictionary of First Names. Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 400, 404. ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1.
2. ^ "Gillespie Family History". Ancestry.com. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
3. ^ a b Black, GF (1971) [1946]. The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning, and History. New York: The New York Public Library. p. 306. ISBN 0-87104-172-3. Accessed via Open Library.
4. ^ "Letter E, Column 157". The electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language (eDIL). Archived from the original on 6 December 2014. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
5. ^ Cartularium Comitatus de Levanax. Edinburgh: Maitland Club. 1833. p. 12. Accessed via Google Books.
6. ^ a b MacLysaght, E (1996). More Irish Families: A New Revised and Enlarged Edition of More Irish Families, Incorporating Supplement to Irish Families, with an Essay on Irish Chieftainries. Dublin: Irish Academic Press. p. 109. ISBN 0-7165-2604-2. Accessed via Open Library.
7. ^ Byrne, FJ (2008) [2005]. "Ireland and Her Neighbours, c.1014-c.1072". In Ó Cróinín, D (ed.). Prehistoric and Early Ireland. New History of Ireland (series vol. 1). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 862–898. ISBN 978-0-19-821737-4.
8. ^ O'Laughlin, M (1992). The Book of Irish Families Great & Small. Kansas City: Irish Genealogical Foundation. p. 125. ISBN 0-940134-08-X. Accessed via Open Library.
9. ^ Owen, RC (1993). The Modern Gaelic-English Dictionary. Glasgow: Gairm Publishers. p. 138\. ISBN 1-871901-29-4.
10. ^ Mark, C (2003). The Gaelic-English Dictionary. New York: Routledge. p. 719\. ISBN 0-203-27706-6.

Surname list

This page lists people with the surname Gillespie.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.