Adel (name)

Adel is a given name of ancient European origins that evolved from words meaning "noble", "nobility" or "elite".[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]

Adel

Illustration of Prince Adel of Frisia (son of King Friso of Frisia) by Martini Hamconii
Pronunciation	/ˈɑːdəl/
Gender	Masculine and feminine
Language(s)	Proto-Germanic
Name day	20 October (Adeline) 16 December (Adelaide) 24 December (Adèle)
Origin
Language(s)	Proto-Germanic
Derivation	From proto-Germanic "aþalą" and "ōþilą"
Meaning	Noble, nobility, elite
Region of origin	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
Related names	Adelson, 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.[17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]

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 Liege (born ca. 632 AD). The earliest known man with the name was King Adel of Sweden (born ca. 572 AD). His son's name was Adelson.[29][30][31][32][33] 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.[34][35][36]

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.[37]

Origins

Ancient words

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").[38][39][40][41][42]

Today, "adel" is used throughout much of north-western Europe as the word for nobility.[43][44][45][46][47]

Other origins include:

• Runic alphabet (before the adoption of the Latin alphabet)
• Latin alphabet (derived from the Etruscan and Greek alphabets; ultimately from the Phoenician alphabet)

Popularity

Globally

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.[48][49][50]

Pronunciation

English: /ˈɑːdəl/ (listen)

Variations

Other languages

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

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

Royalty

• Adel I Friso of Friesland (died c. 245 BC), King of Friesland
• Adel II Atharik of Friesland (died c. 151 BC), King of Friesland
• Adel III Ubbo of Friesland (died c. 71 BC), King of Friesland
• Adel IV Asega Askar of Friesland (died c. 11), King of Friesland

Artists

• Adel Rootstein (1930–1992), British mannequin designer

Music

• Adel Heinrich (born 1926), American composer, organist, and university teacher
• Adel Souto (born 1969), American musician

Business

• Adel Chaveleh, American businessman and CIO of Crane Worldwide Logistics

Politics

• Adel Tamano, Filipino educator, lawyer and politician
• Adel Yzquierdo (born 1945), Cuban politician and engineer

Sports

• Adel Tankova (born 2000), Ukrainian-born Israeli Olympic figure skater
• Adel Weir (born 1983), South African squash player

Family name

Arts and entertainment

• Daniel Adel (born 1962), American painter and illustrator
• Sharon den Adel (born 1974), Dutch singer and composer
• Ilunga Adell (born William Adell Stevenson in 1948), American television and film producer, screenwriter and actor
• Joan Elies Adell i Pitarch (born 1968), Catalan-language poet and essayist
• Traci Adell, Playboy Playmate of the Month for July 1994

Politics

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

Sciences

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

Sports

• Carolyn Adel (born 1978), Suriname swimmer and Olympian
• Gun Ädel (born 1938), Swedish cross-country skier

Fictional characters

• Adell (アデル), a major character in the video game Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories
• Adel Frost (아델 프로스트), a minor character in the now-discontinued two-dimensional side-scrolling MMORPG Grand Chase
• Adel, a minor antagonist character in the video game Final Fantasy VIII
• Adél, a character in GeGeGe no Kitaro (2018)
• Coco Adel, a character in the RWBY television show and novels

Notes

References

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. 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. "Princess Adel of Liege". Geni Genealogy (MyHeritage).
30. The Catholic Encyclopedia. 1909.
31. "King Adel of Sweden". Geni Genealogy (MyHeritage).
32. The Swedish Chronicle (Vetus chronicon sveciæ prosaicum or Prosaiska krönikan). 1400s.
33. Peterson, Lena (2007). Lexikon över urnordiska personnamn (Lexicon of Nordic personal names before the eighth century). Swedish Institute for Language and Folklore.
34. Hamconii, Martini (1620). Frisia sev de viris rebvsqve Frisiæ illvstribvs. National Library of the Netherlands (original from the University of Amsterdam).
35. Sandbach, Wiliam (1876). The Oera Linda Book. Library of Alexandria.
36. "King Adel of Frisia". Geni Genealogy (MyHeritage).
37. Wehr, Hans (1979). A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. ISBN 9783447020022.
38. Dale, Van (2005). Groot woordenboek van de Nederlandse taal (Great Dictionary of the Dutch Language). Van Dale Lexicografie.
39. Dale, Van (2007). Groot etymologisch woordenboek (Great Etymological Dictionary). French & European Publications.
40. Brachet, Auguste; Kitchin, George (1878). An Etymological Dictionary of the French Language. Clarendon Press.
41. Skeat, Walter (1882). An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. Courier Corporation.
42. Kluge, Friedrich (1891). An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language. George Bell & Sons.
43. "Adel (German-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
44. "Adel (Dutch-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
45. "Adel (Danish-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
46. "Adel (Norwegian-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
47. "Adel (Swedish-to-English translation)". bab.la (Oxford University Press).
48. "Adel (male-name statistics)". Nordic Names. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
49. "Adel (female-name statistics)". Nordic Names. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
50. "Adel (name statistics)". Names Encyclopedia. Retrieved 15 September 2018.

See also

• Adel (surname)
• Germanic name