Gilly

Literary name

"youthful"

Gilly Origin and Meaning

The name Gilly is a girl's name.

Gilly is a name that's popped up from time to time in different contexts: As a nickname for Gillian, for instance, and as the name of a town in Switzerland. But it's increasingly associated with Hannah Murray's character Gilly in HBO's Game of Thrones, whom Sam Tarly rescued from Craster's Keep.

Despite her rough Wildling origins, Gilly has become one of the more charming, approachable characters on the show, and her name is just familiar enough that we can see it finding mainstream popularity. Spelled Gili, it's a unisex Hebrew name meaning "joy."

Famous People Named Gilly

• Gilly Louise Scarlett Flaherty English footballer
• Gilly Helen Coman English actress
• Gilly Flower English actress

The name Gilly in Pop Culture

• Galadriel "Gilly" Hopkins main character in "The Great Gilly Hopkins" by Katherine Paterson
• Geillis "Gilly" Ramsey character in "Thornyhold" by Mary Stewart
• Gilly character in the "Game of Thrones" series
• Gilly character on "Saturday Night Live" played by Kristen Wiig