Meaning
God has given.
The entry gives this gloss for the underlying Biblical Hebrew name. A biblical figure’s biography is not part of the lexical meaning.
A LITTLE UNCOMMON. ENTIRELY YOURS.
Nathaniel
Meaning, origin and pronunciation, with published usage by place and year.
Keep this name?
Checking your saved choices…
Share this name or preview its baby card in Discover.
Origin
Biblical Hebrew through Greek; English form influenced by Daniel.
The exact entry traces Nathaniel through Nathanael and Ancient Greek Ναθαναήλ to Biblical Hebrew נְתַנְאֵל. Daniel influenced the English spelling; this does not make Nathaniel a nickname of Daniel.
English pronunciation
/nəˈθæn.jəl/
English form with three syllables. TH is the sound in thin.
Recorded English reading, as published. Accents and preferred pronunciations can differ.
Published name usage
Counts apply only to the exact spelling, place, year and recorded usage shown. Places are separate; these figures are never added into a worldwide total. Missing or suppressed records never mean zero.
| Place | Year | Recorded usage | Published births | Rank | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | 2003 | Girls | 6 | 2353 | 2025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published. |
| Canada | 2025 | Boys | 296 · preliminary | 102 | 2025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published. |
| France | 2025 | Boys | 55 (rounded to 5) | 761 | Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published. |
| England & Wales | 2025 | Boys | 361 | 149 | Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published. |
| Northern Ireland | 2025 | Boys | 9 | 212 | Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published. |
| Scotland | 2025 | Boys | 14 | 269 | Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published. |
| Ireland | 2025 | Boys | 21 | 223 | Names below three occurrences are unpublished. Accent recording changed in 2018; comparisons across that boundary may not describe the same spelling coverage. Counts refer to registrations in the year. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Rank basis: source published. |
| United States | 2022 | Girls | 6 | 13592 | Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts. |
| United States | 2025 | Boys | 2,565 | 140 | Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts. |
Canada, Ireland and France coverage includes confidently matched existing profiles only; unmatched spellings are awaiting review. French counts are rounded to five.
Sources & notes
Open an entry for its source, credit, licence and full qualifications. Different name traditions remain separate.
Meaning: God has given.
Checked against cited source
The entry gives this gloss for the underlying Biblical Hebrew name. A biblical figure’s biography is not part of the lexical meaning. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names. No source audio reused.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Nickname: Nathan
Checked against cited source
Nickname option: Nathan can be used for Nathaniel. The scholarly Nathan entry identifies a modern short-form connection to Natanael; the same page explicitly lists Nathaniel among the regional forms of that parent name. This connection does not replace Nathan’s independent Biblical history. Popularity statistics remain separate. Credit: Eva Brylla and Katharina Leibring, Förnamn i Sverige – kortfattat namnlexikon, second edition (Isof, 2026). Source: https://isof.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:2041530/FULLTEXT01.pdf#page=300. License: Original factual summary; source rights retained (https://isof.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:2041530/FULLTEXT01.pdf). Adaptation: Rare Baby Names wrote a brief reverse-relationship summary, retaining conditional and language-specific usage; source passages, images and recordings are not reproduced. Copyright remains with Charlotta Seiler Brylla, Katharina Leibring and Isof.
Original factual summary; source rights retained
Origin: Biblical Hebrew through Greek; English form influenced by Daniel.
Checked against cited source
The exact entry traces Nathaniel through Nathanael and Ancient Greek Ναθαναήλ to Biblical Hebrew נְתַנְאֵל. Daniel influenced the English spelling; this does not make Nathaniel a nickname of Daniel. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names. No source audio reused.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
English pronunciation: /nəˈθæn.jəl/
Checked against cited source
English form with three syllables. TH is the sound in thin.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Supporting evidence: Wiktionary: Nathaniel’s Hebrew-to-Greek name history
Checked against cited source
The source documents the meaning and formation route. Existing Nathanael variant and English pronunciation remain unchanged; statistics for distinct spellings remain separate. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names. No source audio reused.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Spelling variant: Nathanael
Checked against cited source
English given-name relationship. These spellings remain separate in popularity statistics.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
country_CA
View statistics source (link unavailable)
country_FR
View statistics source (link unavailable)
country_IE
View statistics source (link unavailable)
Source: NISRA : Website: www.nisra.gov.uk
Attribution: Source: NISRA : Website: www.nisra.gov.uk
License: Open Government Licence v3.0
(C) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland.
Attribution: (C) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland.
License: Open Government Licence v3.0
Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence
Attribution: Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence
License: Open Government Licence v3.0
U.S. Social Security Administration
Attribution: U.S. Social Security Administration
Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.
Credit: Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.
License: Statistics Canada Open Licence
Adaptation: Adapted from Statistics Canada, First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators, Table 17-10-0147-01, reference years 1991–2025. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product.
Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.
Credit: Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.
License: CC BY 4.0
Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: joined the published count and rank indicators and matched unambiguous existing spellings. Source values retained.
Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.
Credit: Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.
License: Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab)
Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: column names and sex codes mapped and unique case-only spellings matched to existing profiles. Published rounded counts and ranks retained.