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Boy · Latin, from Greek
Leo
Say it: LEE-oh
Meaning
Latin leo 'lion', from Greek leōn.
Certainscholars agree on this meaning.
A late Roman name made prominent by Pope Leo the Great and many later popes and emperors.
Its wave through time
A revival, back after decades away
In the United States
- 221,567 babies given this name since 1880
- At its height in 2020, about 1 in 238 boys
- 7,190 babies in 2020
Through the ages
- Ancient Rome750 BC to AD 476
- The Early Middle Ages400 to 800
- The High and Late Middle Ages1100 to 1450
- Victorian and Belle Époque1837 to 1914
- The Modern Age1880 to today
Used by
The family of the name
| Italian | Leone |
|---|---|
| Spanish | León |
| French | Léon |
| Polish | Leon |
| Russian | Lev |
Famous bearers
- Pope Leo I, Leo the Great
- Leo Tolstoy, Russian writer
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- Lives of the saints and early Christian martyrologies
- Royal and noble genealogies
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.