 The biblical Nathanael depicted in stained glass. | |
| Pronunciation | /nəˈθæniəl/ |
|---|---|
| Gender | Masculine |
| Origin | |
| Word/name | Hebrew |
| Meaning | God has given or Gift of God |
| Other names | |
| Nickname(s) | Nat, Nate |
| Related names | Jonathan, Nathan, Nathaniel |
Nathanael is a biblical given name derived from the Hebrew נְתַנְאֵל (Netan'el), which means "God/El has given" or "Gift of God/El."[1] Nathaniel is the variant form of this name and it stands to this day as the usual and most common spelling for a masculine given name. Other variants include Nathanel, Netanel and Nathanial.
Several figures in the Bible bear forms of this name. In the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), the name is shared by a prince (or chieftain) of the Tribe of Issachar (Numbers 7:18–23, in the Naso parsha)[2] and by a brother of King David (1 Chronicles 2:14).[3] In the New Testament, Nathanael is said to be an early follower of Jesus of Nazareth, according to the Gospel of John (1:45; 21:2).
The related name Elnathan could be rendered "Gift of El" (Hebrew God). Four people named Elnathan are mentioned in the Hebrew Bible: one at 2 Kings 24:8, and three in Ezra 8:15–20. A similar ancient name with the same meaning as Elnathan, is Jonathan which signifies "YHWH has given".
In the Bible
Notable people with this name
A
- Nate Ackerman (born 1978), a British-American mathematician and wrestler
B
- Nathanael Ball (1623–1681), an English clergyman, assistant to Brian Walton in his London Polyglot Bible
- Nate Bargatze (born 1979), an American comedian and actor
- Nathanael Barnes (born 1987), an Australian rugby league footballer
- Nathanael Burwash (1839–1918), a Canadian methodist, minister and university administrator
C
- Nathanael Carpenter (1589 – c. 1628), an English author, philosopher, and geographer
- Nathanael Chalmers (1830–1910), a New Zealand pastoralist, explorer, politician, planter, sugar miller and magistrate
- Nathanael Cousins, an American Magistrate Judge
D
- Nathanael Diesel (1692–1745), a Danish composer
E
- Nathanael Emmons (1745–1840), an American congregational minister
F
- Nathanael Fouquet (born 1972), a French slalom canoeist
G
- Nathanael Gottfried Leske (1751–1786), a German scientist and geologist
- Nathanael Gray, a professor of biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology at Harvard Medical School
- Nathanael Greene (1742–1786), Major General of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War
- August Nathanael Grischow (1726–1760), a German mathematician and astronomer
H
- Nathanael Greene Herreshoff (1848–1938), American naval architect
J
- Nathanael Jones (c. 1624 – 1683), a Welsh gentleman-poet
L
- Johann Nathanael Lieberkühn (1711–1756), a German Physician
- Nathanael Liminski (born 1985), a German politician
M
- Nathanael Matthaeus von Wolf (1724–1784), a German botanist, physician and astronomer
- Nathanael Mbourou (born 1996), a Gabonese professional footballer
N
- Nat Neujean (1923–2018), a Belgian sculptor
O
- Nate Oats (born 1974), an American basketball coach
- Nathanael Ogbeta (born 2001), an English footballer
- Nathanael of Ohrid (1820–1906), a Bulgarian cleric, writer and revolutionary from Macedonia
- Nathanael Orr (1917–2016), an Australian politician
P
- Nathanael G. Pendleton (1793–1861), an American politician
- Nathanael Pringsheim (1823–1894), a German botanist
R
- Nathan Ralph (born 1993), an English footballer
- Nathanael Richards (1630–1654), an English dramatist
S
- Nate Saint (1923–1956), an evangelical Christian missionary pilot
- Nathanael Saleh (born 2006), an English actor
- Nathanael Salmon (1675–1742), an English antiquary
- Nathanaël (born Nathalie Stephens, 1970), Canadian writer and translator
V
- Nathanael Villanueva (born 1995), a Filipino footballer
W
- Nathanael West (1903–1940), American writer
- Nathanael Wiseman, an entrepreneur and founder and CEO of Award-winning production company Redeeming Features
People with the name Nathanial
- Nathanial Saltonstall (circa 1639–1707), American judge
See also
- Nathaniel
- Natanael (given name)
- Nathan (given name)
- Nate (given name)
- Nethaneel
- All pages with titles beginning with Nathanael
- All pages with titles beginning with Nathanial
References
- ↑ Hanks, Patrick, et al. Oxford Dictionary of First Names (Second Edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006. Print.
- ↑ "The Dilemma of Nisanel ben Tzuar". Torah.org. Retrieved 2019-08-22.
- ↑ Simmons, Rabbi Shraga. "Boys' Names". aish.com. Retrieved 2019-02-12.