Samuel
/ˈsæmjuːəl/ proper noun
- proper noun A male given name from Hebrew.
- proper noun One of two books of the Old Testament and the Hebrew Tanakh.
- proper noun (biblical) The primary author and central character of the first book of Samuel.
- proper noun A surname.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Latin Samuēl, from Ancient Greek Σαμουήλ (Samouḗl), from Biblical Hebrew שְׁמוּאֵל (šəmûʾēl, literally “'God has set' or 'God has placed'”).
Taken to mean a contraction of popular folk etymology שְׁאִלְתִּיו מֵאֵל (“I have asked/borrowed him from God”) (Modern: Šəʾīltīv mēʾĒl, Tiberian: Šĭʾīltīw mēʾĒl) by way of שָׁאוּל מֵאֵל (“asked/borrowed from God”) from 1 Samuel 1:20.
Sources: Wiktionary — from the Wiktionary entry “Samuel”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details