Gail

Gail is an English given name that originated as a short form of Abigail, a Hebrew name meaning father's joy, from the elements av, meaning father, and gil, meaning joy or rejoicing. It gained independent use as a given name in the twentieth century, particularly popular in the United States during the 1940s and 1950s. The spelling variant Gayle is also commonly found, and the name continues to appear as both a given name and a surname.