 He was of good family and connections, possibly of African origin, but he was probably born and certainly brought up in Rome.He attended the Pythian Games in the year 147, and resided for a considerable period in Athens.Gellius studied rhetoric under Titus Castricius and Sulpicius Apollinaris; philosophy under Calvisius Taurus and Peregrinus Proteus; and enjoyed also the friendship and instruction of Favorinus, Herodes Atticus, and Fronto.