Nehal (Sanskrit: नेहल, pronounced næhāl, Persian: نهال, pronounced næhāl) is a South Asian and Middle Eastern name derived from Sanskrit meaning "intelligent" or "born at a time of intelligence" however it also has some Persian roots, meaning "newly planted tree," metaphorically referring to attributes of beauty and youth. The name has a variety of meanings in other languages, such as "rainy," "loving," "intelligent," "genius," "spring," and "beautiful." In Arabic, Nehal is a collective word describing water from springs, essentially meaning "source of life"; as a name, it symbolises the will to drink from the source of knowledge and therefore means "eager to acquire knowledge". Nehal also means beautiful, handsome, and intelligent. In Punjabi, Nehal means "joy" or "happy". In Sanskrit, Nehal means "born during the period of intelligence".

This article does not cite any sources. (August 2020)

Notable individuals with the name include:

• Nehal Bibodi, Indian-Ugandan cricketer
• Nehal Chudasama, Indian model
• Nehal Hashmi, Pakistani lawyer and politician
• Nehal N. Mehta, American cardiologist
• Nehal Saafan, Egyptian synchronized swimmer