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Greetings,
We didn't find any evidence for the name "Gariel" in Scotland or any other culture. The closest name we found was "Gabriel," the name of an angel mentioned in the Bible. However, this may be useful for you. "Gabriel" was used as a woman's name in English (1). Some form of "Gabriel" was used in most cultures in Europe, and so you could use a form of the name with most personas you might choose.
We've spent some time talking about possible places for you to look at a persona. Given that we don't have any idea what you're interests might be, we decided to suggest some cultures who are underrepresented in the SCA and let you investigate from there.
A personal favorite of mine is the Byzantine Empire, which had a great deal of influence over the East. The Byzantines were the Roman Empire, and thought of themselves as such; they were able to survive against great odds until the 15th century. As a Byzantine, your first language would be Greek.
In period, modern-day Spain and France were divided into smaller nations which had their own cultures and traditions, but which don't get much attention from SCA people. Burgundy (in eastern France) and Provence (in southern France) were both semi-independent areas which struggled with the French kings based in Paris for many years. Provence had its own language; Burgundy was an English ally against France in the Hundred Years War. Savoy, a nation which contained parts of modern France and Italy, was a nation until the 19th century. Brittany is home to a people related to the Welsh who still maintain their own language and culture.
Portugal was a major sea power, especially in the 15th and early 16th centuries, after which time it was eclipsed by Spain. Despite this there are very few Portuguese personas in the SCA. The Iberian peninsula is also home to the Basques, a group of people who speak a language unrelated to any in Europe. The mountains between modern-day France and Spain, home to many Basques, were the independent Kingdom of Navarre, which might be another source for a persona. The Mediterannean coast of modern Spain was the Kingdom of Aragon, a powerful trading nation who spoke Catalan, a language different from Spanish. The parliament of Aragon met until 1714, and the area (now called Catalonia) is still a center of commerce.
Switzerland, though not a single nation at this time, was a meeting point for French, German, and Italian cultures which few people investigate for personas.
There are plenty of Vikings in the SCA, but few people choose personas from late-period Scandinavia. A late-period Icelandic or Norwegian persona would be an interesting choice as well.
Hopefully this has given you some ideas. If your university library has a copy of the Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages, this would be a good place to start researching these cultures. Once you have an idea of which one to research, you can look for specific information.
We hope this has been helpful.
In service,
Alan Fairfax
Academy of S. Gabriel