Joel
Joel comes from the Hebrew "Yoel," meaning "Yahweh is God" — "Yah" being the short form of Yahweh and "El" meaning God. In the Hebrew Bible, Joel was a prophet whose book describes a locust plague and predicts the outpouring of God's spirit on all people. He is one of the twelve minor prophets. Joel was a top-200 American name from 1960 to 2010, peaking at #71 in 1981. Joel (the pianist and singer Billy Joel, born 1949, whose "Piano Man" (1973) and "Uptown Girl" (1983) defined an era of American rock) is the most famous American bearer. Joel (the filmmaker Joel Coen, born 1954, who with his brother Ethan made "Fargo" (1996) and "No Country for Old Men" (2007)) gave the name cinematic weight. I find Joel has an elegant, slightly biblical quality — the single syllable is direct, and the "J" opening is firm. The "l" ending gives it softness. Joel has been outside the US top 200 since 2015. Joel is a male name of Hebrew origin that means "Yahweh is God". Elegant, biblical, and a little musical. The name sounds friendly. Joels tend to be artistic. US peaked #71 in 1981. Now top 200. Well-known people named Joel include Joel (biblical prophet), Billy Joel (musician), Joel Coen (filmmaker), Joel (Hebrew name). Common variations and related forms of Joel include Yoel (Hebrew), Joël (French), Yoeli (variant), Joell (variant).