Gentle Surname

30,349th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 17,604 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
Egypt
Highest density in:
Belize

Gentle Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the gentle.' Originally one who was not a Christian; later, one of polished, well-bred manners, 'genteel.' Then, again, one of gentle, benign character.

William le Gentil, Yorkshire 1273. Hundred Rolls.

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Gentle Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Egypt7,2301:12,7161,519
United States3,1311:115,76512,501
England1,5261:36,5124,780
Australia1,3511:19,9822,773
Nigeria1,2491:141,8289,083
Belize8281:42977
South Africa6011:90,14611,052
Ghana2771:97,5489,187
Canada2551:144,49314,820
Guyana1971:3,869698
Scotland1291:41,5023,856
New Zealand1041:43,5427,204
Suriname961:5,7561,347
Wales831:37,2843,678
Honduras771:114,4991,790
Ecuador751:212,0788,027
Trinidad and Tobago561:24,3572,692
Jamaica411:69,9993,452
Northern Ireland361:51,2514,273
Netherlands341:496,68247,398
Kuwait291:131,05814,967
Panama261:150,4714,892
India251:30,682,615377,978
Grenada231:4,719595
Germany151:5,367,031196,901
China131:105,178,5825,529
United Arab Emirates91:1,018,03036,884
Costa Rica81:597,5094,667
Cuba41:2,880,67910,064
France41:16,605,680368,153
Cameroon41:5,192,267135,173
Saudi Arabia41:7,713,95437,548
Malaysia41:7,373,556230,001
Hong Kong31:2,445,1619,595
Uganda31:13,013,093160,157
Mexico31:41,375,40271,397
Denmark31:1,881,57267,227
Jersey31:33,0674,675
Italy31:20,385,563143,117
Brazil31:71,358,111770,017
Cambodia21:7,743,57311,959
Belgium21:5,748,322130,559
Bahamas21:195,8761,708
Norway21:2,571,14395,402
Argentina21:21,371,707253,176
Iceland21:190,0456,825
Uzbekistan11:30,929,14267,786
Venezuela11:30,204,07785,459
Ireland11:4,708,93929,543
Zambia11:15,849,92253,989
Benin11:10,335,602103,742
Togo11:7,247,76812,049
Afghanistan11:32,153,18360,828
Thailand11:70,638,3451,175,915
Tanzania11:52,941,613123,716
Taiwan11:23,444,74693,622
Pakistan11:178,643,885213,220
Dominican Republic11:10,432,93236,508
Czechia11:10,633,469206,023
Ivory Coast11:23,071,23276,679
Japan11:127,844,29373,547
Laos11:6,588,3231,961
Macau11:601,6301,582
Montserrat11:4,947471
Nepal11:28,480,95622,413
Syria11:19,301,02222,457
Philippines11:101,238,223404,861
Poland11:38,008,749231,653
Portugal11:10,418,24125,048
Senegal11:14,579,34211,705
Singapore11:5,507,70347,049
Spain11:46,752,036156,870
Switzerland11:8,212,915156,297
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland41:1,107,46726,093
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England7871:30,9734,122
Scotland1751:21,3902,080
Wales281:56,0152,800
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States3331:150,80713,975

Gentle (7,558) may also be a first name.

Gentle Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the gentle.' Originally one who was not a Christian; later, one of polished, well-bred manners, 'genteel.' Then, again, one of gentle, benign character.

William le Gentil, Yorkshire 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Robert le Gentill, or Gentyl, Wiltshire, ibid.

John le Gentyl, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

William le Gentil: Patent Roll, 4 Edward III. pt.

Agnes Gentildoghter, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Johannes Gentill, 1379: ibid.

Robertus Pedifer, 1379: ibid.

1555. Christning of Mathew Jentyll: St. Peter, Cornhill.

A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

Eight of the name Gentle are recorded in Dunblane and neighborhood in seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (Dunblane). Bardsley records the name in England in 1273.

The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

(Italian, English) One with polished, well-bred manners, or of a gentle or benign character; originally, one not a Christian.

Dictionary of American Family Names (1956) by Elsdon Coles Smith

From disposition.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

From the French, Gentil; from the Danish, Genkle; a personal name.

British Family Names: Their Origin and Meaning (1903) by Henry Barber

Gentle Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Gentle Come From? nationality or country of origin

The surname Gentle occurs in Egypt more than any other country or territory. It can be rendered as:. Click here for other possible spellings of Gentle.

How Common Is The Last Name Gentle? popularity and diffusion

The surname is the 30,349th most frequently occurring last name worldwide, borne by approximately 1 in 413,971 people. This last name occurs mostly in Africa, where 53 percent of Gentle reside; 41 percent reside in North Africa and 41 percent reside in Arabic North Africa. It is also the 73,841st most commonly used first name at a global level, borne by 7,558 people.

The surname is most widespread in Egypt, where it is carried by 7,230 people, or 1 in 12,716. Excluding Egypt Gentle is found in 72 countries. It also occurs in The United States, where 18 percent are found and England, where 9 percent are found.

Gentle Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The frequency of Gentle has changed through the years. In The United States the number of people carrying the Gentle last name expanded 940 percent between 1880 and 2014; in England it expanded 194 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Scotland it contracted 26 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Wales it expanded 296 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Ireland it contracted 75 percent between 1901 and 2014.

Gentle Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those carrying the last name is principally Presbyterian (100%) in Ireland and Christian (98%) in Nigeria.

In The United States Gentle are 3.79% more likely to be registered Republicans than The US average, with 50.56% registered to vote for the political party.

The amount Gentle earn in different countries varies notably. In South Africa they earn 23.32% more than the national average, earning R 293,064 per year; in United States they earn 1.39% less than the national average, earning $42,549 USD per year and in Canada they earn 10.29% more than the national average, earning $54,796 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Gentle
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis