Family name origins & meanings
- German : from Middle High German geselle ‘companion’ (Old High German gisell(i)o, a derivative of sal ‘hall’, originally referring to someone who shared living accommodation). In the medieval trade guilds, this word acquired the specialized sense of ‘journeyman’, i.e. one who had completed his apprenticeship and was working in the workshop of a master craftsman; the surname may well be derived from this specialized sense, rather than merely from a nickname meaning ‘companion’ or ‘friend’.