Daniel 1:7
Context1:7 But the overseer of the court officials renamed them. He gave 1 Daniel the name Belteshazzar, Hananiah he named Shadrach, Mishael he named Meshach, and Azariah he named Abednego. 2
Daniel 1:11
Context1:11 Daniel then spoke to the warden 3 whom the overseer of the court officials had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah:
1 tc The LXX and Vulgate lack the verb here.
2 sn The meanings of the Babylonian names are more conjectural than is the case with the Hebrew names. The probable etymologies are as follows: Belteshazzar means “protect his life,” although the MT vocalization may suggest “Belti, protect the king” (cf. Dan 4:8); Shadrach perhaps means “command of Aku”; Meshach is of uncertain meaning; Abednego means “servant of Nego.” Assigning Babylonian names to the Hebrew youths may have been an attempt to erase from their memory their Israelite heritage.
3 sn Having failed to convince the overseer, Daniel sought the favor of the warden whom the overseer had appointed to care for the young men.