Gilmore Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Gilmore last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Gilmore last name
Meaning of the Gilmore last name: son of the devotee of Mary. The Gilmore surname comes from Gaelic Mac Giolla Mhuire, "son of the devotee of the Virgin Mary". In Ireland the last name is associated with Down and Antrim, while the Scottish form Gilmour is old in Ayrshire and Renfrewshire. A curious detail of this family name meaning: the Irish and Scottish families are of separate origin, but they carry the very same Gaelic name.
Arms associated with the Gilmore name
Irish heraldry blends Gaelic and Anglo-Norman traditions, and coats of arms associated with the Gilmore surname draw on both, each set out in a short blazon.
Get your full Gilmore family history
This is only a glimpse of the Gilmore story. The full Gilmore history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Gilmore coat of arms. Get the full Gilmore report.
Gilmore name FAQ
What does the Gilmore name mean?
Son of the devotee of Mary. Common variants include Gilmour, Gillmore.
Where does the Gilmore surname come from?
It originates in Northern Ireland, and is also found in the United States, Scotland and Canada.
Is there a Gilmore coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Gilmore coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: MacLysaght, The Surnames of Ireland; George F. Black, The Surnames of Scotland (New York Public Library, 1946); Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).