boy's name
Nathanael
na-ta-na-EL
- Origin Hebrew
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 3
- Letters 9
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 42,086
the United States
#633
2025 births
Nathanael is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "God has given," and it is the same name as Nathaniel with the spelling closer to the Greek. It ranks 188th in France and 633rd in the United States.
- Nathanael is a name of Hebrew origin.
- Peaked in 2000, when 609 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 7,501 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1915.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Nathanael over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1910s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 19 |
| 1920s | 23 |
| 1930s | 50 |
| 1940s | 63 |
| 1950s | 78 |
| 1960s | 174 |
| 1970s | 1,491 |
| 1980s | 3,526 |
| 1990s | 4,606 |
| 2000s | 5,712 |
| 2010s | 4,292 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 2,210 |
What Nathanael means
Nathanael means God has given, or gift of God. The Hebrew joins natan, he gave, with El, God — the same construction as Jonathan, where the divine element is the shortened Yah instead.
Where Nathanael comes from
Nathanael comes from the Hebrew Netan'el, from natan, to give, and El, God. In John's gospel Nathanael is the disciple who asks whether anything good can come out of Nazareth and is told by Jesus that he saw him under the fig tree before Philip called him; he is traditionally identified with Bartholomew, who appears in the other gospels but not in John. The Nathanael spelling, with the ae, follows the Greek and Latin rather than the Hebrew, and Nathaniel is the anglicized form that dominates in English. Nathan is a separate biblical name — the prophet who confronts David over Bathsheba — from the same natan root but without the divine element, so the two are related rather than identical.
Nathanael in use
Nathanael ranks 188th in France with about 320 births in 2025 and 633rd in the United States with 442 births. It is stable in our data with a peak in 2000, and our records carry it from 1915. It reaches 872nd in England and Wales. Nathaniel and Nathanaël are counted separately in every register, so the sound stands higher than any one spelling shows.
How popular is Nathanael?
In 2025, Nathanael was given to 442 babies in the United States, ranking #633 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Nathanael is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
How Nathanael is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Nathanaël | Nathanaël is Nathanael written with a diaeresis in France, and the spelling parents there overwhelmingly choose: it ranks #188 in France, against #1,247 for Nathanael. | 7,830 |
Names that peaked alongside Nathanael
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Nathanael also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Nathanael over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
4 nicknames for Nathanael
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Nathanael in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Nathanael
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Nathanael — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Nathanael
What does the name Nathanael mean?
Nathanael means "God has given," from natan, he gave, and El, God.
Is Nathanael the same as Nathaniel?
Yes. Nathanael follows the Greek spelling; Nathaniel is the anglicized form.
Is Nathanael the same as Bartholomew?
Traditionally identified as the same disciple — Nathanael appears only in John, Bartholomew only in the other gospels.
Is Nathan the same name?
Related but not identical. Nathan has the same natan root without the divine element.
How popular is the name Nathanael?
In 2025, Nathanael was given to 442 babies in the United States, ranking #633 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Nathanael a girl's or a boy's name?
Nathanael is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Nathanael?
Nathanael has 3 syllables.
When was Nathanael most popular?
Nathanael peaked in 2000, when 609 babies were given the name. Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Nathanael?
Nathanael is usually shortened to Nathan, Nate, Nat and Natty.
Is Nathanael a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Nathanael currently ranks #188 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.