Samuel

Samuel (Hebrew: שְׁמוּאֵל Šəmūʾēl, Tiberian: Šămūʾēl) is a male given name and a surname of Hebrew origin. It means "name of God", deriving from the Hebrew Shem (שֵׁם) (which means "name") + ʾĒl (which means "God" or "deity"). However, from the explanation given in 1 Samuel 1:20, the name could alternatively come from a contraction of the Hebrew שְׁאִלְתִּיו מֵאֵל (Modern: Šəʾīltīv mēʾĒl, Tiberian: Šĭʾīltīw mēʾĒl), meaning "I have asked/borrowed him from God". This is the verse in which the Prophet Samuel's mother Hannah names her son, after praying that she would be able to give birth. Her prayers having been answered, she dedicates the child to God as a Nazirite. Samuel was the last of the ruling judges in the Old Testament. He anointed Saul to be the first King of Israel and later anointed David. As a Christian name, Samuel came into common use after the Protestant Reformation. Famous bearers include the American inventor Samuel F. B. Morse (1791–1872), the Irish writer Samuel Beckett (1906–89) and the American author Samuel Clemens (1835–1910), who wrote under the pen name Mark Twain. The name Samuel is popular amongst Black Africans, as well as among African Americans who follow Christianity and Islam alike. It is also widespread amongst the modern Jewish communities, especially Sephardic Jews and Ashkenazi Jews.