Béla

The name Béla is from the Hungarian word 'bél' which means gut, bowel. [noted -ed]

Some think the name Bela comes from Slavic meaning "white." This is not possible because the Hungarians had this name prior to their entry into central Europe in @896. They lived previously in what is now the Ukraine and previous to that had lived in the Kazan area of Russia. The only population influencing them there were Turkic people evidenced by their nearly total absorption of Turkic culture. Slavic words entered the language in the modern Hungarian area and were agricultural. The name could ultimately come from the Middle East since the ancient Hungarian alphabet originates there coming through Turkic peoples. There are three instances of the name in the Old Testament.

According to several Hungarians, the root of the name Bela derives from the name PETER.