When you have a common surname like Smith or Johnson, you often have to put up with people asking, “Hey, are you related to so-and-so?”. And celebrities are no exception to this pesky habit. Over the last couple of years, we’ve seen tons of people wondering whether Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is related to adventurer and TV personality, Josh Gates. So what’s the answer?
Despite their shared love for science and history, Bill Gates and Josh Gates are not related. Josh typically likes to keep his private life private. But we know that Bill Gates has no male siblings, and his only male child is called Rory John Gates, not Josh.
So they may have the same name and be in the same game, but that’s about as far as the connection between Bill and Josh goes. But Bill and Josh certainly aren’t the first celebrity duo to share the same surname. Other examples include Kristen Bell and Drake Bell, Paul McCartney and Jesse McCartney, and Jessica Simpson and Cody Simpson.
Keep reading if you want to find out who Josh Gates is, the etymology of the surname Gates, and whether Bill Gates has any famous relatives.
Who is Josh Gates?
Josh Gates is an American TV star best known for his show, Expedition Unknown. 42-year-old Gates was born in Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts, and currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
Josh is an avid explorer and has traveled to more than 100 countries throughout his career. His expeditions are also backed by academic knowledge, since he has a joint honors Archaeology and Drama degree from Tufts University in Massachusetts.
Josh’s TV career started in 2007 when he became the host of Destination Truth. The show follows Gates and his team investigating age-old legends, i.e., Bigfoot, the Yeti, and the Leprechaun. It is often set in unchartered territories that have not been featured on mainstream TV before. Destination Truth ran on the Syfy channel until its final season in 2014.
But Josh wasn’t away from the big screen for long. Gates’ second TV show, Expedition Unknown, first aired in January 2015. The series is comparable to Josh’s prior endeavors, as it follows Gates and his team across the globe as they explore archaeological discoveries, scientific breakthroughs, and historical mysteries.
Josh has also participated in a variety of other shows, such as Monster Hunter, Legendary Locations, and Stranded. All in all, these efforts mean Josh Gates has a net worth of $4 million.
It’s in The Name
If you believe in destiny, you may be wondering if there is something inherent in the surname ‘Gates’ that brings about fame and fortune.
According to House of Names, Gates is an English name that was first brought to England during the Norman Conquest in 1066. It derives from the Olde English pre-7th century word ‘gatu’, which is plural for ‘geat’, meaning ‘gate’. The surname was typically given to people who lived by the gates of a medieval walled town.
Gates eventually found its way across to the U.S in around 1880. By 2014, Forebears.io predicted that there were 69,949 registered Gates’ in the U.S, at a frequency of 1:5182.
Famous Relatives
With that in mind, does Bill Gates have any other famous relations?
In line with Gates’ roots in the English Norman conquest, it makes sense that Bill Gates’ 28th great-grandfather is William the Conqueror. William reigned in England from 1066 until he died in 1087.
If you trace Gates’ history even further back, you can also see that Bill Gates’ 33rd great-grandfather is Robert I. Robert served as the King of France between 922 to 923 AD.
So it seems that great leadership has run in Bill Gates’ family for many centuries. Are you surprised that Bill Gates and Josh Gates aren’t related?