Anabel

Anabel is the Spanish form of the Scottish name Annabel. Most people erroneously believe that Anabel is merely the combination of Anna plus Belle, but this is incorrect. Rather, Annabel is a Scottish female name which developed from the old Anglo-Norman girl’s name Amabel. Amabel ultimately comes from the Old French (via the Latin) “amabilis” meaning “loveable”. Although Amabel is now obsolete, she gave way to the names Annabel and Mabel before her extinction. Annabel became a particular favorite in medieval Scotland and was generally confined there from the 12th century until the 19th century before finally jumping the Scottish borders. Several different spelling variations emerged depending on the numbers of “n”s and “l”s as well as whether the name ended with an “a” an “e” or neither. Anabel is the Spanish form of the name (“amable” is the Spanish word for “loveable”).