Given name & surname
Penuel
“the face of God”
Penuel is used as a given name and a surname. One Hebrew interpretation is “the face of God.”
Original Hebrewפנואל
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Hebrew interpretation is “the face of God.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Hebrew.
How it developed
From the Hebrew verb pana (פנה), “to turn,” and the Hebrew word 'el (אל), “God.”
From biblical name research
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 2025. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Penuel appears in Genesis 32:31, Judges 8:9, Judges 8:17 and 2 other passages.
- Genesis 32:31
- Judges 8:9
- Judges 8:17
- 1 Kings 12:25
- 1 Chronicles 4:4
From biblical name research
Penuel through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 6
- 6 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2025
- 6 babies
- 2025
- 6
- #11,658 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 6 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 11,658 among boys’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 469 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Penuel’s family of names
Penuel has a related form in Penuele. Penuel has a related form in Penuell. Penuel has a related form in Penuelle.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
See also 10
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
- Phoenixshares a root
- Phinehasshares a root
- Penielshares a root
- Phanuelshares a root
- Phoeniciashares a root
- Jephunnehshares a root
- Punonshares a root
- Pinonshares a root
Show 2 moreShow fewer
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