Leon (given name)

Leon is a first name of Greek origin. The Greek λέων (leōn), meaning "lion," has spawned the Latin "leo," French "lion," Irish "leon" and Spanish "león." Perhaps the oldest attested historical figure to bear this name was Leon of Sparta, a 5th-century BCE king of Sparta, while in Greek mythology Leon was a Giant killed by Heracles. During the Christian era Leon was merged with the Latin cognate Leo, with the result that the two forms are used interchangeably.[1] A similar Greek name to Leon is Leonidas, meaning "son of a lion", with Leonidas I, king of Sparta, being perhaps the most famous bearer of that name.

Leon (English, German, Russian version) or Léon (French version) or León (Spanish version) may refer to:

People

See also

References

  1. Withycombe, E.G. (1945) The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, 3rd edition, Oxford University Press
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, May 05, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.