The story
- Old English · inherited fromgafeluc“spear, javelin”
- Middle English · inherited fromgavelock
- English todaygavelock
From Middle English gavelock, from Old English gafeluc (“spear, javelin”), from gafol (“fork”) + -uc (diminutive suffix). Compare Old Norse gaflak, Icelandic gaflok, Old French gavelot, glavelot, French javelot, Irish gabhal (“fork”), Welsh gaflach (“fork, dart”). More at gaff, gaffle and javelin.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.