Nathaniel

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Modification, under influence of Daniel, of Nathanael, from Ancient Greek Ναθαναήλ (Nathanaḗl), from Biblical Hebrew נְתַנְאֵל (Netan'el, literally God has given).[1]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /nəˈθæn.jəl/
  • (file)

Proper noun[edit]

Nathaniel

  1. A male given name from Hebrew.
    • c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:
      Nathaniel's coat, sir, was not fully made,
      And Gabriel's pumps were all unpink'd i' the heel.
    • 1836 March – 1837 October, Charles Dickens, chapter 34, in The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, London: Chapman and Hall, [], published 1837, →OCLC:
      ‘What’s your Christian name, Sir?’ angrily inquired the little judge. ‘Nathaniel, Sir.’ ‘Daniel—any other name?’ ‘Nathaniel, sir—my Lord, I mean.’ ‘Nathaniel Daniel, or Daniel Nathaniel?’ ‘No, my Lord, only Nathaniel —not Daniel at all.’ ‘What did you tell me it was Daniel for, then, sir?’ inquired the judge.
    • 2010, Sophie Hannah, A Room Swept White, Hodder & Stoughton, →ISBN, page 102:
      Marcella and Nathaniel. Now I know their names. I haven't thought much about having children, but if I did, I wouldn't give them names like that. They're the sort of names you choose if you think you're someone to be reckoned with.

Related terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

Further reading[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Hanks, Patrick, et al. Oxford Dictionary of First Names (Second Edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006. Print.