Adel is a given name of ancient European origins that evolved from words meaning "noble", "nobility" or "elite".[a]

Adel
Illustration of Prince Adel of Frisia (son of King Friso of Frisia) by Martini Hamconii
Pronunciation/ˈɑːdəl/
GenderMasculine and feminine
Language(s)Proto-Germanic
Name day
  • 20 October (Adeline)
  • 16 December (Adelaide)
  • 24 December (Adèle)
Origin
Language(s)Proto-Germanic
DerivationFrom proto-Germanic "aþalą" and "ōþilą"
MeaningNoble, nobility, elite
Region of originEurope Northern Europe
Other names
Variant form(s)Ådel, Ädel, Ádel, Adél, Adal, Adil, Adiel, Ædel, Édel, Edel
Pet form(s)Addy, Addie, Adels, Addles, Al, Adelie
Related namesAdelson, Adeldaughter, Adelantis, Adelais, Adelaide, Adeliza, Adeline, Adelina, Adelle, Adella, Adelta, Adelia, Aderic, Adolf, Albert, Alice, Ethel, Ethelle

It is derived primarily from the languages of north-western Europe, which include English, French, Luxembourgish, German, Dutch, Frisian, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Faroese, and Icelandic. Today, "Adel" is a gender-neutral given name and short form of given names with this combining element.[b]

Nordic variants of the name include Ådel, Ädel, Ádel, and Ædel. German and Dutch variants of the name include Adal and Edel. French variants of the name include Édel and Adél (not to be confused with Adèle). Adelson and Adelaide are notable masculine and feminine forms. Adelle (Adèle) is a popular feminine alternative.[26][27][28][5]

Although global, Adel remains prominent in north-western European countries. It can also be found as a family name with or without an affix (such as de Adel, den Adel, or van Adel).

The earliest known woman with the name was Princess Adel of Liège (born c. 632 AD). The earliest known man with the name was King Adel of Sweden (born c. 572 AD). His son's name was Adelson[29][30][31] The legendary king of the Frisians and founder of the kingdom, Friso, had a son named Adel (later king of Frisia), supposedly born in the 3rd century BC.[32]

Adel is an exemplar of a monothematic name. It is also the root of the names Adelais, Aderic, Adolf, Albert, and Alice, and their variants in other languages.

It is not related to the Arabic name Adil, also spelled Adel, which derives from the root 'ādil, meaning just or equitable.[33]

Origins

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Ancient words

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The name derives from Old Dutch "ōþil", Old German "adal", Old Norse "aðal", Old French "œ̄ðel", and Old English "æðel" by evolution of proto-Germanic "aþalą" (meaning "noble" and "kin") and "ōþilą" (meaning "inheritance" and "rule of the land").[34][35][36][37][38]

Today, "adel" is used throughout much of north-western Europe as the word for nobility.[39][40][41][42][43]

Popularity

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Globally

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Adel was found over 4,000 times as a family name and over 15,000 times as a given name in 55 different countries. It is a relatively rare name. Aside from Nordic countries, it is most prominent in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Russia.[44][45][46]

Pronunciation

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English: /ˈɑːdəl/

Variations

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Other languages

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English French Dutch German Danish Norwegian Swedish Finnish Icelandic Russian
Adel Adél Adel Adel Adel Adel Adel Adel Adel Адель
Ethel Édel Edel Adal Ådel Ådel Ådel Ådel Ádel Adel
Ethèle Edel Ædel Ædel Ädel Ädel Ædel

Other forms

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English French Spanish Italian Greek German Dutch Danish Norwegian Swedish Icelandic
Adelson Adelsohn Adelzoon Adelsøn Adelssønn Adelssön Adelssonur
Adelantis Adelantos Αδελάντης
Adelais Adélaïs Adalheidis
Adelaide Adélaïde Adelaida Adelheid Adelhart
Adeliza Αδελίζα
Adeline Adéline Adelína Adelhein
Adelle Adèle Adella
Adelta Adelíta Αδελτα
Adelia Adélia Adelía Adelía

Given name

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Royalty

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Arts and entertainment

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Acting

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Music

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  • Adel Dahdal, Swedish record producer and mix engineer
  • Adel Heinrich (1926–2022), American composer, organist, and university teacher
  • Adel Kamel (1942–2003), Egyptian music critic, musicologist, and composer
  • Adel Souto (born 1969), American musician
  • Adel Tawil (born 1978), German singer, songwriter, and producer

Writing

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Business

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Military

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Politics

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Sciences

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Sports

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Other

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Family name

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Arts and entertainment

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Politics

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  • Ted Adel, Canadian politician, member of the Legislative Assembly of Yukon

Sciences

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  • Arthur Adel (1908–1994), American astronomer and astrophysicist

Sports

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  • Carolyn Adel (born 1978), Suriname swimmer and Olympian
  • Gun Ädel (1938–2021), Swedish cross-country skier
  • Jo Adell (born 1999), American baseball player

Fictional characters

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Notes

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References

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  1. ^ "Adel (pronunciation)". Cambridge Dictionary (Cambridge University Press).
  2. ^ Förstemann, Ernst (1856). Altdeutsches namenbuch. Verlag von ferd Förstemann.
  3. ^ Hellquist, Elof (1922). Svensk etymologisk ordbok. Gleerup.
  4. ^ Holmes, Urban; Schutz, Alexander (1938). A History of the French Language. Biblo & Tannen.
  5. ^ a b Hualde, Crisóstomo (1945). Diccionario etimológico de helenismos españoles. Imprenta Aldecoa.
  6. ^ Holthausen, Ferdinand (1948). Vergleichendes und etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altwestnordischen, Altnorwegisch-isländischen: einschliesslich der Lehn- und Fremdwörter sowie der Eigennamen. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht.
  7. ^ Schlaug, Wilhelm (1955). Studien zu den altsächsischen Personennamen des 11. und 12. Jahrhunderts. Gleerup.
  8. ^ Schlaug, Wilhelm (1962). Die altsächsischen Personennamen vor dem Jahre 1000. Gleerup.
  9. ^ Otterbjörk, Roland (1979). Svenska förnamn: kortfattat namnlexikon. Almqvist & Wiksell.
  10. ^ Lautin, Inger (1993). Hva skal barnet hete?. Schibsted Forlag.
  11. ^ Kruken, Kristoffer; Stemshaug, Ola (1995). Norsk personnamnleksikon. Samlaget.
  12. ^ Weitershaus, Friedrich (1998). Das große Vornamenlexikon. Orbis Verlag.
  13. ^ Brylla, Eva (2004). Förnamn i Sverige: kortfattat namnlexikon. Liber.
  14. ^ Seibicke, Wilfried (2007). Historisches Deutsches Vornamenbuch. De Gruyter.
  15. ^ Peterson, Lena (2007). Nordiskt runnamnslexikon. Reklam & Katalogtryck.
  16. ^ Willemyns, Roland (2013). Dutch: Biography of a Language. OUP USA.
  17. ^ "Adel (female name)". Nordic Names.
  18. ^ "Adel (male name)". Nordic Names.
  19. ^ "Adel (girl name)". Babble (Disney).
  20. ^ "Adel (boy name)". Babble (Disney).
  21. ^ "Adel (girl name)". Baby Name Science.
  22. ^ "Adel (boy name)". Baby Name Science.
  23. ^ "Adal (Germanic name element)". Nordic Names.
  24. ^ "Adél (combining name element)". Nordic Names.
  25. ^ "Adel (combining name element)". Nordic Names.
  26. ^ "Adelson (notable masculine form)". Names Encyclopedia.
  27. ^ "Adelaide (notable feminine form)". Names Encyclopedia.
  28. ^ "Adelle (notable feminine form)". Names Encyclopedia.
  29. ^ The Catholic Encyclopedia. 1909.
  30. ^ The Swedish Chronicle (Vetus chronicon sveciæ prosaicum or Prosaiska krönikan). 1400s.
  31. ^ Peterson, Lena (2007). Lexikon över urnordiska personnamn (Lexicon of Nordic personal names before the eighth century). Swedish Institute for Language and Folklore.
  32. ^ Hamconii, Martini (1620). Frisia sev de viris rebvsqve Frisiæ illvstribvs. National Library of the Netherlands (original from the University of Amsterdam).
  33. ^ Wehr, Hans (1979). A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. ISBN 9783447020022.
  34. ^ Dale, Van (2005). Groot woordenboek van de Nederlandse taal (Great Dictionary of the Dutch Language). Van Dale Lexicografie.
  35. ^ Dale, Van (2007). Groot etymologisch woordenboek (Great Etymological Dictionary). French & European Publications.
  36. ^ Brachet, Auguste; Kitchin, George (1878). An Etymological Dictionary of the French Language. Clarendon Press.
  37. ^ Skeat, Walter (1882). An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. Courier Corporation.
  38. ^ Kluge, Friedrich (1891). An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language. George Bell & Sons.
  39. ^ "Adel (German-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
  40. ^ "Adel (Dutch-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
  41. ^ "Adel (Danish-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
  42. ^ "Adel (Norwegian-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
  43. ^ "Adel (Swedish-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
  44. ^ "Adel (male-name statistics)". Nordic Names. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  45. ^ "Adel (female-name statistics)". Nordic Names. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  46. ^ "Adel (name statistics)". Names Encyclopedia. Retrieved 15 September 2018.

See also

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