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Ghislain

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Masculine Ghislain, Guislain, Gislain or Ghiselin and feminine Ghislaine or Ghyslaine is a French personal name used in countries with French-speaking populations. It is originated with a 7th century saint, Saint Ghislain (died 680) of Hainaut and was latinized as Gislenus.

Etymologically, the name is usually said to derive from the oblique case of a Proto-West Germanic root: *gīsl “hostage, pledge” (see Wiktionary:Ghislain). As such, it is cognate with modern German Geisel "hostage". (However, one source has instead claimed that the name is derived from Germanic roots gis "information" and lind "sweet".[1]) The name possibly became popular as a secondary given name, which was intended to give infants the protection of St Ghislain.[2]

Other people with this given name include:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Sache, Ivan (4 March 2017). "Saint-Ghislain (Municipality, Province of Hainaut, Belgium)". crwflags.com. Retrieved 30 December 2021.
  2. ^ "Saint Ghislain of Hainaut". Forget Bruges. 4 November 2020.