Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Can you shed some light on Messanger Daniel. I mean can u tell me something about him and what is he called in Arabic. For ex. Yousuf=Joseph etc etc  

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Answer:

Who was Prophet Daniel ?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

There is no Messenger of Allah (saws) by the name of Daniel in the Glorious Quran. The Glorious Quran mentions only about 24 Prophets by name amongst the more than 124,000 Prophets Allah Subhanah sent to the earth over time, for the guidance of mankind.

Allah says in the Glorious Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verses 163-165:

163 We have sent thee (O Mohamed) inspiration as We sent it to Noah, and the Messengers after him; We sent inspiration to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes to Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David We gave the Psalms.

164 Of some Apostles We have already told thee the story; of others We have not; and to Moses Allah spoke direct.

Apostles who gave good news as well as warning, that mankind after (the coming) of the Apostles should have no plea against Allah: for Allah is Exalted in Power Wise.

Daniel is indeed mentioned in the Bible as a Prophet of Allah amongst the Bani-Israel. Since Daniel is not mentioned in the Glorious Quran, nor did the Messenger of Allah (saws) ever mention his name, we cannot confirm nor deny his Prophethood.

There is no particular name for Daniel in the Arabic language, like Yousuf for Joseph, Yaqoob for Jacob, Ayyub for Job, etc. In the Arabic language Daniel is simply called ‘Daa-nee-yaal’.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan