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Nathaniel

Nathaniel: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning
“gift of God”
Origin
Hebrew
Say it
nuh-THAN-yəl · 4 syllables
Used for
Boys

From Hebrew Netan'el. A biblical name borne in the New Testament, often linked with Nathanael as a related form.

English namesHebrew namesNames meaning giftNames meaning faithClassic namesBiblical namesInternational names

How popular is Nathaniel?

2024754 per million US babies
1880192019602000
Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Babies named Nathaniel in 20242,511

2024 rank#144 boys

Peak year2002

Total US babies since 1880285,643

Nathaniel is fading: recent use is about 62% of its level ten years before.

Names like Nathaniel

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

  • Nathanialgift of God · Hebrew
  • Noahrest; comfort · Hebrew
  • Jamessupplanter · Hebrew
  • Elijahmy God is Yahweh · Hebrew
  • JohnYahweh is gracious · Hebrew
  • Michaelwho is like God? · Hebrew
  • Benjaminson of the right hand · Hebrew
  • Levijoined, attached · Hebrew

Nathaniel questions

What does the name Nathaniel mean?

Nathaniel means "gift of God". It comes from Hebrew. From Hebrew Netan'el. A biblical name borne in the New Testament, often linked with Nathanael as a related form.

Is Nathaniel a boy or girl name?

Nathaniel is mainly a boy's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Nathaniel?

2,511 US babies were named Nathaniel in 2024. Its peak year was 2002.

How do you pronounce Nathaniel?

Nathaniel is usually pronounced nuh-THAN-yəl.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.