Does the name Jilly have any deeprooted negative connotations in English?

None that I know of.

None that I can think of.
I’ve never heard of a person named Jilly, and it makes me think of jelly.

Jill, Jillian, Jilly might be a nickname for either. I actually like the name (nickname) Jilly.

Gave you all great answers for my relief. Thanks!

None that I can think of. But a girl named Jilly in an English-speaking country would inevitably attract the epithet “silly.”

No.

My name is Jill and I get a bit annoyed on the (rare) occasions when someone calls me Jilly. Actually, when I was a kid, my mom really discouraged people from calling me that, too. I’m not offended when people use that nickname, but it feels a bit infantilizing to me. I try to keep in mind that it is usuallmean affectionately.

By the way, @Zyx, I think you’re smart to ask. I do a lot of research on names before I commit to them, especially if they come from a language base other than my own. Cultural associations with names and words can be pretty hard to ferret out when you come from another country, but they can have an instantaneous (and often undesired) effect on readers from that country. Whenever I use a completely made-up name for some exotic place or character in a story, I’m not satisfied unless it gets me zero hits in Google.

No negative connotations but I call my baby niece, Jillianne, Jilly Bean (like Jelly Bean). I think it’s pretty cute.

@Paxan8 – I think that’s cute for a baby!

Thanks @answerjill and @Jeruba

I was also wondering if Midas was known from anything other than the hand gold starving thing. I really like the name and if the myth isn’t too popular in English speaking countries I might just use it anyway.

Midas is only known for turning things to gold (Greek mythology) and fixing your car. It’s a popular mechanic shop. I have never met or heard of a reallife Midas. But if you can work that turning things to gold in it would be a great nickname for the male charactor whose real name is Michael or something.

@Paxan8 Meh, car repair can be ignored, but I want to ignore the original myth completely.
Thanks for the answer!

You can’t separate Midas from the myth of the “golden touch.” That’s its origin. Even if you ignored it, any reader with a modicum of education would make the connection.

Nothing specifically negative except that it’s rather old-fashioned. I wouldn’t expect to meet anyone called Jilly who was born after the 1960s.