angelos

Angelos is a masculine given name of Greek origin, derived from the word angelos, meaning messenger or angel. In modern Greek, the name is used as a personal name and occasionally as a surname. The root appears in many European languages in various forms, such as Angelo in Italian and Anghel in some Slavic languages, reflecting the cultural diffusion of the term.

As a given name and surname, Angelos has been carried by numerous individuals in Greek-speaking communities and the Greek diaspora. It is common in Greece and Cyprus, where it may appear in archival records, contemporary names, and family lineages. Variants and diminutives are often used in everyday speech and formal contexts alike.

Historically, the Angelos (or Angeloi) were a noble Byzantine Greek family whose members ruled as emperors and princes in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. The dynasty included Isaac II Angelos and Alexios III Angelos, who reigned during a turbulent period that culminated in the Fourth Crusade and the fragmentation of the Byzantine state. The Angeloi were later displaced by other imperial lines, but the surname remains a notable marker of Byzantine-era lineage.

In religious and classical texts, angelos is the Greek word for angel or messenger, used in early Christian writings to denote heavenly beings and divine messengers. The term continues to appear in scholarly discussions of Byzantine history, Greek linguistics, and Christian scripture, where it is transliterated as angel or angelos in English.