Name of the Week: Abel

 

 

 

Origin:

In the Old Testament, Abel is the second son of Adam and Eve.  Some scholars derive it from the Hebrew hebel "breath, vapor" which figuratively meant 'vanity'.* Others, derive it from the Assyrian ablu "son," perhaps with the meaning of 'true son.'*  According to the Book of Genesis, Cain, the firstborn, was a farmer, and the younger son, Abel, was a shepherd. Some, therefore, have linked the name Abel to the Assyrian ibilu "ram, camel, ass, or wild sheep."*

Usage:

There are a handful of early saints who bore the name Abel, including an early Syrian saint, Abel of Tacla Haimonot, an early Coptic saint and Saint Abel of Reims (d. 764) who was abbot of Lobbes and Bishop of Reims. According to some sources, Saint Abel of Reims was either Scottish or Irish, but it is not known whether the latter had Abel as his birth name, or whether he adopted it later.  This does, however, tie in with the fact that Abel was adopted by early Irish clerics, such as monks Abel of Emlagh (d. 747) and Abel of Portumna (d.754). In Britain, Abel was in use in Britain in the Middle Ages, perhaps, in some part, thanks to this early saintly boost. There was also a 13th century king of Denmark who bore the name.  There are several examples of Abel in use as a given name in the 12th and 13th century in England. It is described by Reaney and Wilson* as "a common 13th century christian name" and was used sufficiently to establish the surnames Abel, Able, Abelson and Nabb – the later of which derived from the pet-form Nab.  It seems to have dropped out of use in the 14th century. Certainly, George Redmond's rank of 1000 names from ten counties in the poll taxes between 1377 and 1381 doesn't feature Abel. However, by the late 16th century, Abel was back in use again in moderate numbers.  Abel ranked in the lower half of the top 100 in England and Wales in the early 1800s and gradually declined by the end that century. Data from the 1881 UK census demonstrates that it was most common in the west of England and Wales.  Births in England and Wales:  1840: 1850:  1860:  1870:  1880:  1890: 1900:  #93 #95 #119 #138 #153 #208 N/A From 1996 to 2011, Abel ranked consistently below the top 500 in England and Wales. By 2013, however, it had risen to #374 (107 births).  It's biggest leap came in 2016, when it moved up from #290 (163 births) to #227 (247 births). In 2017, Abel ranked #196 in England and Wales with 276 births and #281 in Scotland with 15 births.

Famous Bearers:

Royalty: * Abel, King of Denmark (1218–1252), Duke of Schleswig and King of Denmark. * Abel, Lord of Langeland (1252–1279), Lord of Langeland and third son of King Abel of Denmark. * Abel Makashvili (1860–1920), Georgian prince and soldier. History: * Abel of Tacla Haimonot, a saint of the Abyssinian Church. * Saint Abel of Reims (d. 764), abbot of Lobbes and Bishop of Reims. * Abel Tasman (1603–1659), Dutch seafarer, explorer, and merchant. * Abel Niépce de Saint-Victor (1805–1870), French photographic inventor. * Abel Lefranc (1863–1952), French literary historian. * Abel Gance (1889–1981), French film director, producer, writer and actor. * Abel Wolman (1892–1989), American inventor, scientist, professor and pioneer of modern sanitary engineering. Contemporary: * Abel Ferrara (born 1951), American film director. * Abel Antón (born 1962), Spanish long-distance runner. * Abel Ferreira (born 1978), Portuguese footballer. * Abel Pintos (born 1984), Argentinian singer-songwriter. Literature and Other Media: * Abel Magwitch, a character in Charles Dicken's novel Great Expectations (1861). * Abel, Mabel's brother in the 1976–2000 comic strip Motley's Crew. * Abel Teller, the son of Jax Teller in the FX series Sons of Anarchy.

Variants:

Hebel, Hevel (Hebrew), Abele (Italian), Aapeli (Finnish)

Pronunciation:

AY-bəl [key]

Possible diminutives:

Abe, Nab

Sibling Names:

Eden     Sadie     Cora     Eve     Anya     Jemima  Levi     Jesse     Elias     Caleb     Joel     Ezra

Name Lists:

Quirky Biblical Names   Slim Softies   Royal Names of Europe   Dickensian Names

 

If you like Abel you may also like:   Amos, Abram, Eben, Judah, Eli, Job, Saul, Ezekiel, Asa, Silas

Thanks to Jean for requesting this name.