Daniels (English)
Where does "Daniels" come from?
The surname Daniels originates from the given name Daniel combined with the English suffix '-s,' which historically functions as a patronymic indicating 'son of Daniel.' The roots of 'Daniel' stretch back through Middle English and Ancient Greek to the Hebrew name Daniyyel, meaning 'God is my judge.' Meanwhile, the pluralizing '-s' evolved from Old English and Proto-Germanic plural markers, eventually becoming the standard way to denote both family lineages and multiple individuals.
Full etymology tree
- Daniels (English), 'A surname transferred from the given name from the male given name Daniel.'
- compound Daniel (English), 'A book in the Old Testament of the Bible.'
- inherited Daniel (Middle English)
- inherited Δᾱνῑήλ (Dānīḗl) (Ancient Greek)
- borrowed דָּנִיֵּאל (Dāniyyêl) (Biblical Hebrew)
- inherited Δᾱνῑήλ (Dānīḗl) (Ancient Greek)
- inherited Daniel (Middle English)
- compound -s (English), 'Used to form regular plurals of nouns.'
- inherited -s (Middle English), 'alternative form of -es (plural suffix)'
- inherited -as (Old English), 'Plural ending of nominative and accusative cases, originally of a-stem masculine nouns, later extended to other nouns.'
- inherited *-anz (Proto-Germanic), 'Forms the accusative plural of masculine a-stem nouns.'
- inherited *-ōs (Proto-Germanic)
- inherited *-es (Proto-Indo-European)
- inherited *-oes (Proto-Indo-European)
- inherited -as (Old English), 'Plural ending of nominative and accusative cases, originally of a-stem masculine nouns, later extended to other nouns.'
- inherited -s (Middle English), 'alternative form of -es (plural suffix)'
- compound Daniel (English), 'A book in the Old Testament of the Bible.'
Direct ancestors
Updated June 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris