Asahel

Asahel belongs to the nephew of King David in the Second Book of Samuel, remembered as swift of foot as a wild gazelle and killed young on the battlefield. The Hebrew assembles elements for made by God, a devotional compound that still reads with quiet force. The sound moves in three airy syllables, the soft opening vowel giving way to an unhurried central ah before the gentle el ending common to biblical names. It is rare in contemporary use, which is part of its appeal. A name for parents drawn to scripture's lesser-known figures, to stories of speed and tragedy. Ancient, graceful, specific.