Wa'el, also spelt Wael or Wail, is an ancient Aramaic male given name. The first currently known usage of the name was found and translated at a site called Sumatar Harabesi.[1] There is coinage and inscriptions mentioning a King of Edessa, the "Parthian Wael" and "Wael the king" (Syriac: W'L MLK') on coins around 163AD after the Parthians captured the region from the Romans.[2] The names' usage is pre-Islamic. The name's meaning origin is unknown, however, there are a few different definitions depending on how an ancient text was translated. These known meanings are "clan", "seeking shelter", and "protector".[3][4] Pronunciation differs based on the varieties of Arabic.
Notable people with the name include:
- Wael Abbas (born 1974), Egyptian blogger
- Wael Abdelgawad (born 1965), American author and martial artist
- Wael Al-Dahdouh (born 1970), Palestinian journalist
- Wael Badr (born 1978), Egyptian basketball player
- Wael Ghonim (born 1980), Egyptian computer engineer, author and activist
- Wael Gomaa (born 1975), Egyptian footballer
- Wael Hallaq (born 1955), Palestinian scholar of Islamic studies
- Wael Jassar (born 1976), Lebanese singer
- Wael Kfoury (born 1974), Lebanese singer
- Wael Nazha (born 1974), Lebanese footballer
- Wael Riad (born 1982), Egyptian footballer
- Wael Sawan (born 1974), Lebanese-Canadian business executive
- Wael Talaat (1964-2025), Egyptian snooker player
- Wael Zwaiter (1934-1972), Palestinian writer and translator
- Wail al-Shehri (1973-2001), Saudi al-Qaeda terrorist of American Airlines Flight 11
References
- ^ Retso, Jan (2013-07-04). The Arabs in Antiquity: Their History from the Assyrians to the Umayyads. ISBN 9781136872891.
- ^ Millar, Near East, 112.
- ^ "What does Wael (Muslim Arabic Name) mean?".
- ^ "Wael - Islamic Name Meaning - Baby Names for Muslims".
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