The surname Gehlen was first found in Silesia, where the name gained a significant reputation for its contribution to the emerging mediaeval society. The name derives from the occupational name for a town crier, for which the German word is "geller." It is also a nickname for a man with red hair, from the Yiddish "gel." It later became more prominent as many branches of the same house acquired distant estates and branches, some in foreign countries, always elevating their social status by their great contributions to society.
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Early History of the Gehlen family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gehlen research. Another 111 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1652, 1758 and 1876 are included under the topic Early Gehlen History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Gehlen Spelling Variations
Spelling variations of this family name include: Gehler, Gehlen, Gehren, Geler, Geller, Gelar, Gelan, Gelder, Geldern, Goler and many more.
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Early Notables of the Gehlen family
More information is included under the topic Early Gehlen Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Migration of the Gehlen family
Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Fredrik Gehler, who arrived in New York in 1762; Pete Gehler, who arrived in Dubuque County, Iowa in 1847; Catharina Gehlerin, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753..
Contemporary Notables of the name Gehlen (post 1700)
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Walter Gehlen, West German bronze medalist slalom canoeist at the 1965 World Championships
Dennis Gehlen (b. 1986), also known as TaKe, a German professional StarCraft II commentator
Reinhard Gehlen (1902-1979), German general, Chief of the Wehrmacht Foreign Armies East military-intelligence unit during World War II and later spymaster of the anti–Communist Gehlen Organisation for the United States (1946–19056);
Kurt von Gehlen (1927-1995), German mineralogist and professor
Bruno Gehlen (1871-1951), German entomologist
Adolph Ferdinand Gehlen (1775-1815), German chemist from Bütow, Farther Pomerania who died from arsenic poisoning in Munich on 16 July 1815, age 39
Arnold Gehlen (1904-1976), German philosopher and sociologist
Germany
