עַבְדְּאֵל
𐤏𐤁𐤃𐤀𐤋
Avedeel
H5655 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Personal name meaning 'El/God is servant' or 'servant of El.' Functioning as a theophoric name, it reflects an individual's relationship to, or dedication to serve, the deity El. The semantic range of the name is shaped by its usage as a proper noun rather than as a descriptive or common term.
Semantic Range
personal name; servant of God/El; dedication to deity in the name; proper noun
Root / Etymology
Compound of the root עבד ('to serve, be a servant') and the theophoric element אֵל ('El, God'). Thus, עַבְדְּאֵל is formed as 'servant of El.' The structure parallels similar Semitic personal names with 'servant of [deity]' formulations. The full lexical form is an individual designation, not a descriptive or occupational noun.
Historical & Contextual Notes
עַבְדְּאֵל appears as a personal name in Jeremiah 36:26, identifying an individual with a likely Israelite background during the late monarchic or early exilic period. The inclusion of the theophoric El suggests a formulaic pattern common in ancient Israelite and broader Northwest Semitic naming practices, where service to a deity was a mark of piety or status. The English rendition 'Abdeel' preserves the form but not the meaning, and the name is rare, without evidence of substantive differences between the alternate spelling עַבְדִיאֵל (see e.g. 1 Chronicles 5:15). Unlike later Judean or Jewish naming patterns which preferred the tetragrammaton (YHWH) theophoric forms, this name retains the more ancient usage of 'El.' Standard English translations present it as a proper name, often obscuring its etymological significance. This is not a term for a class or status (like עֶבֶד 'servant, slave'), but a theophoric personal name expressing allegiance or dedication to El.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from עָבַד and אֵל; serving God; Abdeel, an Israelite; Abdeel. Compare עַבְדִיאֵל.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
עבד-אל (ʿ-b-d-ʾ-l) — to serve, be a servant; El (God)
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H5661 | עַבְדִיאֵל | Servant-of-El |
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5655-01 |
עַבְדְּאֵ֔ל | avedeel | HNp |
Abdeel | Servant-of-El | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 total occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5655-01 |
Jeremiah 36:26 | עַבְדְּאֵ֔ל | avedeel | HNp |
Abdeel | Servant-of-El |