Gesselle
A French feminine name meaning "young mistress" or "young lady".
Name Census estimates that about 94 living Americans carry the first name Gesselle. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Gesselle today is around 24 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gesselle births was 2000 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gesselle. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Gesselle. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
94
~ 1 in 3,646,323 Americans
Peak year
2000
17 babies that year
Average age
24
years old
2009 SSA rank
#14,187
Tracked since 1998
Popularity
Gesselle: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gesselle from the 1990s through to the 2000s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 74 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gesselle by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Gesselle during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gesselles live
Origin
Meaning and history of Gesselle
The name Gesselle is believed to have its origins in the Old French language, deriving from the word "gesse," which means "pea" or "vetch." This name likely originated during the Middle Ages, sometime between the 5th and 15th centuries, in regions where Old French was spoken, such as modern-day France, parts of Belgium, and certain areas of Switzerland.
While the precise etymology of the name is not entirely clear, it is thought that Gesselle may have been initially used as a surname or descriptive name for individuals who cultivated or traded in peas or vetches. Over time, it transitioned into being used as a given name, particularly for females.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gesselle can be found in a 12th-century French manuscript, where it was used to refer to a young woman from a farming family. It is also mentioned in several medieval French literary works, such as the 13th-century collection of poems known as the "Roman de la Rose."
Throughout history, there have been a few notable individuals who bore the name Gesselle. One such figure was Gesselle de Montfort (1235-1299), a French noblewoman and the daughter of Simon de Montfort, a prominent leader during the Albigensian Crusade. Another was Gesselle de Châtillon (1292-1359), a French aristocrat and the wife of Robert III, Count of Auvergne.
In the realm of arts and literature, Gesselle Dehayes (1909-1985) was a French painter and illustrator known for her vibrant depictions of rural life in Normandy. Gesselle Tanner (1892-1959) was an American artist and printmaker, best known for her intricate woodcut prints and etchings.
Lastly, Gesselle Roberge (1928-2011) was a Canadian actress and theater director who had a significant impact on the cultural landscape of Quebec, particularly in the realm of French-language theater.
While the name Gesselle may not be as common today as it once was, it carries a rich historical legacy that spans centuries and various cultural spheres, from nobility and literature to the visual arts and the performing arts.
People
Gesselle + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gesselle as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Gesselle: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gesselle?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 94 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gesselle going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 3,646,323 US residents.
Is Gesselle a common name?
We classify Gesselle as "Very Rare". It ranks above 63.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 96 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gesselle most popular?
The single biggest year for Gesselle was 2000, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gesselle is about 24 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Gesselle a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Gesselle in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.