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GILLIES Family History

Recorded as Gillie, Gillies, Gillis, and Gillison, this very interesting and ancient surname is Scottish. It derives from the pre 9th century "Mac gill Iosa", which translates as "The son of the servant of Jesus", and describes an early follower or devotee, and is probably a reference to one of the earliest converts to the Christian church. The given name is first recorded in Scotland in 1128, when one Gillise was a witness to a charter by King David 1st of Scotland to the abbey of Holyrood, whilst in 1264 it is recorded that Gylis filius Angus, known as Angus the sutor or shoemaker, did homage to the prior and convent of St.