Daniel in rabbinic literature

Allusions in rabbinic literature to the Biblical story of Daniel contain various expansions, elaborations and inferences beyond the text presented in the Book of Daniel. These stories are describing Jewish success in the Diaspora, where it was important to emphasize Jewish wisdom and statecraft during periods of foreign domination in order to strengthen the sense of worth and ethnic pride of the Jewish people.

Ancestry

According to rabbinical tradition Daniel was of royal descent; and his fate, together with that of his three friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, was foretold by the prophet Isaiah to King Hezekiah in these words, "and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon".^{Isaiah 39:7} (Talmud tractate Sanhedrin 93b; Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer lii).

According to this view, Daniel and his friends were eunuchs, and were consequently able to prove the groundlessness of charges of immorality brought against them, which had almost caused their death at the hands of the king. It was said of Daniel, "If he were in one scale of the balance and all the wise men of the heathens in the other, he would outweigh them all" (see Yoma 77a).

Daniel

Daniel is a masculine given name and a surname of Hebrew origin. It means, "God is my judge", and derives from two early biblical figures, primary among them Daniel from the Book of Daniel. It is a common given name for males, and is also used as a surname. It is also the basis for various derived given names and surnames.

Background

The name evolved into over 100 different spellings in countries around the world. Nicknames (Dan, Danny) are common in both English and Hebrew, although in some instances "Dan" may be a complete given name rather than a nickname. The name "Daniil" (Даниил) is common in Russia. Feminine versions (Danielle, Daniela, Daniella, Dani, Danitza) are prevalent as well. The Dutch names "Daan" and "Daniël" are also variations of Daniel. A related surname developed as a patronymic, Daniels. Other surnames derived from "Daniel" include McDaniel and Danielson.

In the United States, the U.S. Social Security Administration reports that Daniel has peaked as the fifth most popular name for newborns in 1985, 1990, 2007, and 2008. The U.S. Census Bureau reported that in the 2000 census, "Daniels" was the 182nd most common surname in the U.S., while "McDaniel" was ranked at 323, and "Daniel" (without a final "s") was ranked at 380.

Daniel (Bat for Lashes song)

"Daniel" is a song by English recording artist Bat for Lashes, from her second studio album, Two Suns. It is her best selling single to date, selling over 46,000 copies worldwide. The song was announced as the lead single from Two Suns in January 2009, then released as a digital download single on 1 March 2009, and as a 7" vinyl single on 6 April 2009. The track was written by Natasha Khan and produced by David Kosten, as with all tracks on the album. Ira Wolf Tuton from Yeasayer provided the bass lines for the song and Khan did the rest of the instrumentation herself. Khan said in an interview with The Sun newspaper that "Daniel" is based on a fictional character that she fell in love with as a teenager. The single's cover features Khan with an image of the character Daniel LaRusso, from the film The Karate Kid, painted on her back. A character much like LaRusso also features at the end of the music video which goes with the song. The B-side of the 7" is a cover version of a 1980 single by The Cure.

Daniel (department store)

Daniel is an English department store chain and Royal Warrant holder, with its flagship store situated in central Windsor. It was established in 1901 by Walter James Daniel, and is privately owned.

Department store locations

References

External links

Coordinates: 51°28′55″N 0°36′35″W / 51.4820°N 0.6097°W / 51.4820; -0.6097