Leo

Where Leo comes from

From Latin leō (“lion”), calque of Ancient Greek λέων (léōn), calque of Akkadian 𒉈𒍑 (nēšu)/Akkadian 𒌨𒄞𒆷 (urgulû), from Sumerian 𒌨𒄞𒆷 (UR.GU.LA, “lion; name of constellation”). Doublet of Leon, leu, lev, lion, and Lyon.
— Wiktionary's entry for Leo
  • Latin
  • 2 syllables
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 390
    Leo I born
    Pope from 440 to 461
  2. 1810
    Leo XIII born
    Pope of the Catholic Church from 1878 to 1903
  3. 1880
    First SSA year
    Already #92 among boys — 147 babies in the first year on record.
  4. 2023
    Peak, #18
    8,160 babies named Leo — more than any year before or since.
  5. 2023
    The comeback
    Back to #18 after sinking to #485 in 1995.
In the dictionary
  • A male given name from Latin, borne by numerous saints and 14 popes.
Namesakes
  • Leo XIII · Pope of the Catholic Church from 1878 to 1903, 1810–1903
  • Leo I · Pope from 440 to 461, 390–461
  • Leo X · pope from 1513 to 1521, 1475–1521
  • Leo XII · Pope of the Catholic Church from 1823 to 1829, 1760–1829
  • Leo III · Pope of the Catholic Church from 795 to 816, 750–816

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.