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I've got no clue how popular (or familiar) it might be in the USA. But, if you want to alert people to your chosen pronunciation, why not use the French/Dutch version, Gilles (or Gillis, which is a bit surnamey) - that extra L in the middle makes it look distinctive. In French it'd be Zheel, but in Dutch and Afrikaans it's more like Chil-us, with that Ch being, as they say, like the -ch in Scottish 'loch'!

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If you want to retain the rhymes-with-Miles pronunciation, then why not stick an H in - Ghiles? It looks odd to me, but the sound you prefer would be clearer.

I like it, but am more familiar with the French Gilles. Also with the "J" sound, though somewhat softer, and the "s" is silent.

If there's anything to worry about, it's the Crucible.

Ha, I had that problem with Giles, too! For years I thought it was pronounced either to rhyme with Miles or in French, ZHEEL. Nope, it's none of the above. And I don't like JIELZ at all. It sounds... doofy.

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I think if people saw it they'd think it was pronounced to rhyme with Miles, the way you're saying it. But since I guess that's incorrect, I'd probably avoid using it with that pronunciation.

Giles is a well known name, although it isn't used that much any more. I've only ever heard it pronounced with a "j" sound at the beginning. Having a hard "g" sound makes me think of "guile," as in slyness.

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Anyway, if you're not into the "j" sound at the beginning, you'd better find another name like Gilbert, Guy, or Gaius.

Giles isn't common anywhere afaik, but it was the name of a character in Buffy, which was a fairly popular TV series, and it's a surname. So I think you'd be out of luck trying to get it pronounced another way. How about Guy instead?