Meanings
- A male given name from Hebrew.
Nathaniel's coat, sir, was not fully made, And Gabriel's pumps were all unpink'd i' the heel.
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]3 more examples
‘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.
1836 March – 1837 October, Charles Dickens, chapter 34, in The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1837, →OCLCMarcella 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.
2010, Sophie Hannah, A Room Swept White, Hodder & Stoughton, →ISBN, page 102“Doctors have always approached medications in pregnancy by using it only when indicated, lowest dose, for the shortest duration,” said Dr. Nathaniel DeNicola, an adviser to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists on environmental issues.
2025 September 22, Azeen Ghorayshi, “Trump Issues Warning Based on Unproven Link Between Tylenol and Autism”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 23 Sep 2025
Origin
- Biblical Hebrewנְתַנְאֵל
- Ancient GreekΝαθαναήλ
- EnglishNathaniel
Modification, under influence of Daniel, of Nathanael, from Ancient Greek Ναθαναήλ (Nathanaḗl), from Biblical Hebrew נְתַנְאֵל (Netan'el, literally “God has given”).
More words from Ancient Greek, Biblical Hebrew
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 納撒尼爾 /纳撒尼尔
- 納撒尼爾 /纳撒尼尔 (Nàsǎní'ěr)transliteration of the name
French Nathaniel
- Nathanieltransliteration of the name
Italian Nataniele
- Natanieletransliteration of the name
Cite this entry
Nathaniel. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Nathaniel
“Nathaniel.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Nathaniel. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Nathaniel,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Nathaniel.
Source: Nathaniel on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.