Abigail

Where the name comes from

• Hebrew
  My father is joy, or father (source) of joy
  אֲבִיגַיִל (Avigayil), from av 'father' + gil 'joy, to rejoice'
  Bible dictionaries agree that the name joins the Hebrew words for 'father' and 'joy.' They word it a little differently: 'my father is joy,' 'father (that is, source) of joy,' or 'my father is rejoicing.' The classic Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon adds a question mark to 'my father is joy.' The parts of the name are clear, but the exact sense is not. In names like this, 'father' may refer to God. The Hebrew Bible also uses a shorter form, Abigal.

Abigail across traditions

• Jewish and Christian (Hebrew Bible). In 1 Samuel 25, Abigail is the wise and beautiful wife of Nabal, a rich and harsh man. She calms David's anger and prevents bloodshed. After Nabal dies, she marries David. Another Abigail is David's sister and the mother of Amasa.
• English language. From the 1660s, 'abigail' was also an ordinary English word for a lady's maid. It came from a maid character named Abigail in Beaumont and Fletcher's play 'The Scornful Lady.' The playwrights may have chosen the name because the biblical Abigail calls herself David's 'handmaid.' This use is now old-fashioned.
• Spanish-speaking Christianity. Spanish Bibles, including the Reina-Valera 1960, spell the name Abigail, the same as in English. So the name is familiar in Protestant and Catholic churches across Latin America and in Hispanic communities in the US.
• United States. Peaked in the 2000s. Highest US rank: #4 in 2005 (Social Security Administration).

Who carried it

• Abigail, wife of Nabal and of David (Biblical. The story is set about 3,000 years ago.): A wise woman in 1 Samuel 25 who became one of David's first wives and the mother of his son Chileab.
• Abigail, sister of David (Biblical. The story is set about 3,000 years ago.): Mother of Amasa, who led Absalom's army (1 Chronicles 2:16).
• Abigail Adams (born Abigail Smith) (1744–1818): First lady from 1797 to 1801. She was the wife of John Adams and the mother of John Quincy Adams. Her letters are famous, and she supported education for women.

Forms in other languages

Abigal, Avigail, Avigayil, Abigaïl, Abby, Abbie, Gail

Abigail in letter-number systems

Hebrew, Greek and other traditions gave every letter a number, and read meaning into the totals. These are the counts, computed; the readings are inside the Innerverse.