# Gilroy (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/gilroy/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Irish |
| Type | occupational, named after the work an ancestor did |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 3,910 |
| US rank (2010) | 8,449 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 78,963 people |
| Change since 2000 | +3.0% (3,797 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Variant spellings | Gildroy |

## Etymology

From Middle English Gilry, from Irish Giolla rua (“servant of the red-haired lad”).

## Who carries it

Share of people named Gilroy in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 92% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 2.3% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.9% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.6% |
| Two or more races | 1.6% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Gilroy in the United States.

## People named Gilroy

- Tony Gilroy, American screenwriter and director (born 1956)
- Dan Gilroy, American screenwriter
- Frank D. Gilroy, American playwright, screenwriter, producer, and director (1925–2015)
- Matt Gilroy, American ice hockey player
- Thomas Francis Gilroy, 89th Mayor of New York City (from 1893 to 1894)
- John Gilroy, American film editor (1959-)

## Similar surnames

Guillory, Geller, Gloria, Gallaher, Gaylor, Galliher, Glore, Gallery.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.