Gisle

Gisle is also recorded as another name, grouped separately because the records behind them do not connect to the one described above.

• a separate given name2 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Norway, United States, Sweden

  Also written Gislé

38 further groups record this spelling and are not listed here.

Grouping is the name graph's, not a register's: two spellings join a group when the evidence links them, so a group is a claim about the records rather than about the people.

Gisle is also recorded in one other lexicon, as a different name or as an ordinary word. These are senses of the spelling, not of the name above.

• In ang, dative singular of ġīsl

  as a word·kaikki.org Wiktionary extract (IPA + transliterations)

Ordered by how much of this spelling's record each language holds, so a sense from a language the name is barely used in sits last rather than first.

• Gisle Johnsonb. 1822NONorwegian theologian (1822–1894)
• Gisle Johnsonb. 1876NONorwegian missionary
• Gisle Straumeb. 1917NONorwegian actor and theatre director (1917–1988)
• Gisle Hannemyrb. 1953NONorwegian researcher
• Gisle Ellingsenb. 1965NONorwegian high jumper
• Gisle Kverndokkb. 1967NONorwegian composer
• Gisle Johansenb. 1970NONorwegian saxophonist
• Gisle Bjørnebyb. 1974NONorwegian photographer (born 1974)
• Gisle Torvikb. 1975NONorwegian musician
• Gisle Martens Meyerb. 1975NONorwegian composer

The ten people covered by the most Wikipedia language editions — a proxy for cross-cultural notability, which favours historical and Western figures over equally prominent contemporary ones — shown by birth year. Source: Wikidata (CC0).

A formal English salutation is built on the surname, so it needs a full name — on its own, a first name only supports the informal form.

Register rows as of the 2026-10-09 data build.

What does the name Gisle mean, and where does it come from?

From Old Norse Gísli, short form of compound names containing the word gísl (“hostage”). Recorded by Wiktionary and Nordic Names.

How do you pronounce Gisle?

In Norwegian /ɡiːslə/. Transcriptions are machine-generated except where a dictionary is named.

Is Gisle a male or female name?

Gisle is a male name. National registers that list it by sex list it as male: Norway (SSB).

In which country does Gisle have the most bearers?

In Norway, the national register counted about 1.1 thousand people named Gisle, more than in any other country we hold, where it is most often spelled gisle.

Where is Gisle most common?

Gisle is densest in Norway, where the national register counts about 1 in 4.8 thousand people carrying it.

How common is the name Gisle?

In Norway, the national register counted 1,142 people named Gisle in 2025, about 1 in 4.8 thousand residents.