I’m trans and this is the name I chose for myself, so obviously I like it a lot. Couple of thoughts after having lived with this name for years:-People will always shorten it, always. You have to explicitly tell people you want to be called Nathaniel or else you’re going to end up as Nathan or Nate. -If you do commonly go by a nickname (I go by Nate), you have to make sure there’s no mix up with your legal name being longer. For example, my partner once made a doctor appointment under Nate and I could not attend because it didn’t match my ID -If you prefer Nathan or Nate specifically, more gatekeeping needed. I hate Nathan and have to tell people to call me Nate or Nathaniel -It’s pretty common in my age group (mid 30s, USA). There are three other Nates just on my small team at workOverall it’s been a nice solid name.
― Anonymous User 12/28/2022
2
Nathaniel is one of my favourite boy's names. I love everything about it - it’s classic, biblical, not too popular, and has the amazing nickname Nate! I love it even more because of Nate from One of Us is Lying. A wonderful name that any man or boy is lucky to have.
I like Nathaniel far more than Nathan - it sounds much more courtly and distinguished. Nathaniel Bartholomew is a nice combination - the delicate Nathaniel is paired with the stronger Bartholomew, the repeating "th" sounds pleasant, and Bartholomew was another name for the biblical Nathaniel.
Bartholomew is a nickname for Nathaniel in the bible |Matt:103/John 21:2, it sounds modern in general. I like this website, it gives me the most info about the name Nathaniel.
In 2018, 8 is the most common age for an American (U.S.) Nathaniel who is registered male with the Social Security Administration. It is the 262nd most common male first name for living U.S. citizens.
Of all the classy, gorgeous, versatile names... This is a strong, manly name, yes. It's also the sweetest, gentlest sigh of a name, that would suit a soft-spoken bearer with dark, curly hair, big, shy eyes, and a hesitant smile. Of course, it would also suit a guy who was right in the middle, you know, not shy, per se, but quiet and thoughtful, a creative daydreamer, a la Nathaniel Hawthorne. Like I said, totally versatile. One of my FAVES since I was little!
Love this name. I also love the nicknames Nate, Nathan and Ethan for it.
― Anonymous User 7/3/2017
3
Nathaniel Parker is an English stage and screen actor best known for playing Detective Inspector Thomas "Tommy" Lynley in the BBC crime drama series The Inspector Lynley Mysteries. Parker is a voice over artist and has done work on audio books, including Eoin Colfer's children's Artemis Fowl series, the first three books in Charlie Higson's Young James Bond series, and The Gardens of The Dead by William Brodrick. He read Mark Haddon's novel A Spot of Bother for BBC Radio Four's Book at Bedtime and played Axel in Jules Verne's Journey to the Centre of the Earth, first broadcast on BBC Radio Four Extra on 20 November 2011 and again on 12 November 2012. He has also done voice over work on numerous video games and made many radio appearances as an interviewee and in radio dramas. A complete listing of Parker's extensive audio work can be found online.
I can imagine a really fun and relaxed guy with this name. Especially with the nickname Nate. Love this name and with my top consideration for boys, Jason and Alexander. I don't get how this name is over the top and pretentious, guys... It's seriously only three syllables. Nathaniel Grant, Alexander Lucas & Jason Anthony, are my top three favorite boy combinations.
This name is also sometimes used in Brazil, where it's a variant of the usual Portuguese form Nataniel. (In Brazil, TH is commonly used in place of T, such as in the names Thiago and Nathália.)
I appreciate all of you who distinguish between Nathaniel and Nathan, and the short version of the name, Nat and Nate, respectively. As a young Nathaniel I had always been called "Nat" and at the time it irritated me to be called, "Nate." All that aside, I was named after my Great, Great, Great, Great Grandfather, Nathaniel Ames. An interesting "old coot" who served in the Revolutionary War and at age 30 became a Methodist Minister. If you look up the Hebrew, nĕthan'ēl, it is translated to mean (gift of God). After 70 years of bearing the name, I respect it and feel honored to be so named.
Like "Jonathan", this name means "God gave" or "God has given". "el" is one of many biblical names for God (and equates to the name Allah in Islam), as is the "jo" of "Jonathan". In biblical Hebrew, it was normal for the verb to come before the subject, as in this name. 'nathan' is נתן in both biblical and modern Hebrew and is the 'he' form of the past tense of the verb לתת ('la-tet') - 'to give'. Incidentally, the 'el' of this name is the same as that in 'Michael' ('mi-kha-el' - 'who is like God?').
Nathaniel is a strong name. It makes me think of a boy with different types of being masculine and smart also whitty. There are so many ideas that come to mind when I think of this name so far. Due to my mom, I only want two kids. I am hoping I would get a boy/girl type deal. So I can experience both worlds. If I have a girl I already planned out Anastasia Darcy but if I have a boy it will be Nathaniel Alexander. It would be so adorable: Nate & Stacy, I love it like it's perfection like the perfect sibset names.
Nathaniel Joseph "Nate" Ruess is an American singer. He has been the frontman of two bands, The Format and Fun., and he recently released a solo album. I'm a big fan of his music!
Nathaniel Marvin "Nat" Wolff is an American actor and singer-songwriter.
― Anonymous User 4/25/2015
2
My name is Nathaneal Eugene Alexander. My mom use to call me Than and my brothers and sisters Tanny, which I loved. However, because not everyone could pronounce my name properly, I ended up just being called Alex. A short for my surname.
Such a strong and bold name. I imagine a boy who's athletic and the nickname is so worth it, I can imagine hanging up little figurines with the name Nate on it. This is right now my top favorite boy name; my other favorite is Theodore. I think the only issue with the name is finding a just as elegant middle name so here's some ideas, Nathaniel Jacob, Nathaniel Ethan, Nathaniel Grey and Nathaniel Alexander. So I hope my advice gives you a positive outlook for this name. Also, I think a good sister name for Nathaniel for those who having twins is Arabella so... Nathaniel Patrick and Avalisse Trinity is just perfect together and make beautiful twin names. Nate and Ava just sounds so cute and outgoing. I found the name Avaliese under this site and I created Avalisse so I can have my cute little twist on it.
― Anonymous User 2/5/2015
3
I dunno why I find this name so darn sexy. =D.
― Anonymous User 4/20/2014
2
Ugh. I really don't like this name. It's another one of those names everyone's crazy about that I just don't get. It sounds so long and pretentious. I mean really, are you actually gonna call him Nathaniel on a regular basis? Face it, most people wont, and itll probably get shortened to nate anyway. So why not go with just Nathan? This name just sounds so nerdy and dorky, and its in the top 100, which is disappointing. At least it'll age well. That's about all the credit I can give it.
― Anonymous User 6/15/2013
-8
This name is fantastic. And in reply to Anonymous User 6/15/2013: Well Nathaniel is much better sounding and more sophisticated than Nathan.
I know two Nathaniels - one is 5, and the other is about 18. The name absolutely fits them both. To me, Nathaniel is a classy name that is handsome and likable and suits all ages. I also think it makes an adorable middle name. Oh, and I don't mind the shortened Nathan for Nathaniel - I do prefer Nate, but Nathan is nice as well.
Nathaniel Hawthorne (born 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts) was an iconic American novelist.
― Anonymous User 5/31/2012
2
Sir Nathaniel Bacon (1585-1627) was the first English amateur painter of note.
― Anonymous User 9/2/2011
1
This name just sounds dumb and girly to me, Nate is an ok nickname but a bit boring, Nathan is the best form and it's only ok.If this was my name I'd go by my middle name.
One of my best friends was named Nathaniel. He hated it. He told everyone his full name was Nathan and went by either Nathan or Nate. I always called him by his full name though(; I like it!
I think the name is kind of boring, but I like it just the same, probably because my brother is a different version of this name (Nathanial, with an a instead of an e).
On the HBO show Six Feet Under, the main character's name is Nathaniel Fisher jr., named after his late father, Nathaniel sr. Everyone calls Nathaniel jr. Nate. I really like the nickname Nate, but I really dislike Nathan!
― Anonymous User 7/19/2009
1
I love this name. It sounds classic and impressive. One of my best friends is called Nathaniel and he really suits it.
Oh my gosh, I absolutely LOVE this name! It sounds great and looks great. This name can be young or older sounding. I love the nicknames Nate or Nathan (but I prefer Nate). If I have a boy his name will definitely be this. LOVE IT!
A main character of Elizabeth Speare's 1958 award-winning young adult novel _The Witch of Blackbird Pond_ is Nathaniel "Nat" Eaton. Millions of grade school girls have fallen in love with him along with Kit Tyler, the spunky heroine.
Nathaniel is my brother's name, but I never really it liked that much. It's just too long and sounds too dorky. Other kids (and some adults) sometimes made fun of his name by calling him Thanny or Gnat, and my mother would not allow the use of nicknames. After I read The Scarlet Letter and wrote a paper on Nathaniel Hawthorne, I disliked the name even more.
This is my name and I'm glad it is. I just wonder where I got it from because no one in my family has a name similar to it. I liked the formal version when I was young, but now I just go by Nate. I never liked the nickname Nathan, neither did my parents nor anybody in my family really, I just hate the sound of it.
I really love this name. It is very sweet and I always picture a dark curly haired boy. Also a very sweet and loving boy, I am just in love with it. In the Movie "Love Comes Softly", there is a cute guy in there with this name. It is how I fell in love with it. If I ever had a boy I would probably name him this.
Awesome. It's one of my cousins' names. It sounds great; looks awesome on paper. It's classic, it has great nickname possibilities (my cousin goes by Nate) but there are also others. We call him Nater Tater. ;) Anyway, it's an awesome name that would age beautifully and I would use it. My combination is Lucius Nathaniel, which I adore.
I am honestly in LOVE with this name. I adore it. It's just such an amazing name. It looks great written down, it sounds great and it works so well with other names. Some people might believe that Nathaniel is a -little- old fashioned, but I disagree. It's just...wow. Amazing.
― Anonymous User 4/4/2006
1
I love this name! I found it in the Bartimaeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud. I think it sounds regal.
Fancy lad Nathanial Mayweather is the character played by Chris Elliott in the film Cabin Boy.
― Anonymous User 12/29/2005
1
I love this name, the only thing I don't like is when people call Nathaniel Nathan for short or when they call Nathan Nate for short. Nathaniel can be Nate for short but not Nathan and Nathan can be Nathan not Nate. It bugs me, call them their name not another form like Nathan for Nathaniel. It just doesn't fit.
Just an FYI to a previous comment. Nathan CAN be used as a short form for Nathaniel. Nathaniel is from Nathanael. I found the following when looking up Nathan.NATHAN - Means "giver" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of a prophet and also a son of King David. This name can also function as a short form of JONATHAN or NATHANAEL.
― Anonymous User 1/17/2006
3
One of the main characters of the Bartimaeus trilogy by Jonathon Stroud is Nathaniel.