Boy · Germanic, through Norman French
Gilbert
Say it: GIL-bert
Meaning
From Germanic Giselbert: gisil (sense uncertain: 'pledge' or 'offshoot') and berht 'bright'.
Likelythe main view, with some doubt.
A common Norman name in medieval England.
Its wave through time
Fading since the 1930s
In the United States
- 130,028 babies given this name since 1880
- At its height in 1930, about 1 in 518 boys
- 164 babies in 2020
Through the ages
- The High and Late Middle Ages1100 to 1450
- The Renaissance1400 to 1600
- Victorian and Belle Époque1837 to 1914
- The Modern Age1880 to today
Used by
The family of the name
Other spellings: Gil, Bert, Gislebert, Gilebert
| German | Giselbert |
|---|---|
| French | Gilbert |
| Italian | Gilberto |
| Spanish | Gilberto |
Famous bearers
- Saint Gilbert of Sempringham
- Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- The Domesday Book (1086) source
- English poll taxes and lay subsidy rolls (13th and 14th centuries)
- Medieval European charters and records
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.