# Ishmael vs Ismail

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### Ishmael
*name · IPA /ˈɪʃ.meɪ.əl/ · frequency rank #35,366*
The eldest son of Abraham and his wife's handmaiden Hagar who were cast out after the birth of Isaac; traditionally the ancestor of the Arabs via the Ishmaelites.

### Ismail
*name · frequency rank #26,846*
Ishmael, the first son of Abraham; traditionally the ancestor of the Arabs and a prophet of Islam.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ishmael-vs-ismail