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. 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

• Leon of Modena (1571–1648), Venetian scholar
• Leon of Pella, Macedonian historian
• Leon of Salamis, Athenian politician
• Leon of Sparta, Spartan king
• León Aillaud (1880–1936), Mexican politician
• Leon Bates (1899–1972), American union leader
• Leon Benois (1856–1928), Russian architect
• Leon Best (born 1986), Irish football player
• Léon Bloy (1846–1917), French writer
• Léon Blum (1872–1950), French politician and Prime Minister
• Léon Boëllmann (1862–1897), French composer
• Leon Bourgeois (1851–1925), French politician and Prime Minister
• Léon Breitling (1860–1914), Swiss watchmaker and businessman
• Leon Brittan (1939–2015), British politician
• Leon Camier (born 1986), British motorcycle racer
• Léon Chagnaud (1866–1930), French businessman and politician.
• Leon Czolgosz (1873–1901), American anarchist
• Léon Dierx (1838–1912), French poet
• Léon Dion (1922–1997), Canadian political scientist
• Leon Durham (born 1957), American baseball player
• Leon Edel (1907–1997), American writer and literary critic
• Leon Edney (born 1935), American admiral
• Léon Arthur Elchinger (1908–1998), French Catholic archbishop
• León Febres Cordero (1931–2008), Ecuadorian politician and President
• León Felipe (1884–1968), Spanish poet
• Leon Fleisher (born 1928), American pianist and conductor
• Léon Foucault (1819–1868), French physicist
• Leon Friedman (1886–1948), American politician
• Léon Gambetta (1838–1882), French politician and Prime Minister
• Leon Garfield (1921–1996), British author
• Léon Gaumont (1864–1946), French inventor and industrialist
• Léon Gérin (1863–1951), Canadian lawyer
• León Gieco (born 1951), Argentinian musician and interpreter
• Léon Goossens (1897–1988), British oboist
• Leon Haslam (born 1983), British motorcycle racer
• Leon Hatziioannou (born 1965), Canadian football player
• Leon Jackson (born 1988), British singer
• Leon Jaworski (1905–1982), American lawyer
• Leon Johnson (disambiguation), multiple people
• Leon Koudelak (born 1961), Czech guitarist
• Leon Krier (born 1986), Luxembourg architect
• Leon Lai (born 1964), Hong Kong actor and singer
• Leon Lederman (born 1966), American physicist and Nobel Prize winner
• Léon Augustin Lhermitte (1844–1925), French painter and etcher
• Leon McKenzie (born 1978), British football player
• Leon Milo (born 1956), American musician
• Leon Panetta (born 1938), American politician
• Léon Pétillon (1903–1996), Belgian politician
• Léon Abel Provancher (1820–1892), Canadian priest and naturalist
• Leon Punch (1928–1991), Australian politician
• Leon Radosevic (born 1990), Croatian basketball player
• Leon Robinson (born 1962), American actor and singer
• Leon Rotman (born 1934), Romanian canoer
• Leon Russell (born 1942), American musician
• Léon Say (1826–1896), French economist and politician
• Leon Schiller (1887–1954), Austro-Hungarian director and composer
• Léon Schlienger (1922–2002), French songwriter
• Leon Schuster (born 1951), South African filmmaker, actor and musician
• Leon Sperling (1900–1941), Polish soccer player
• Léon Spilliaert (1881–1946), Belgian painter
• Leon Spinks (born 1953), American boxer
• Leon Sullivan (1922–2001), American civil rights leader
• Leon Taylor (born 1977), British swimmer
• Léon Teisserenc de Bort (1855–1913), French meteorologist
• Léon Theremin (1896–1993), Russian inventor
• Leon Tolstoy (1828–1910), Russian writer
• Leon Trotsky (1879–1940), Russian revolutionary and politician
• Leon Underwood (1890–1975), British sculptor, painter and writer
• Leon Uris (1924–2003), American novelist
• Leon V of Armenia (1342–1393), King of Armenia
• Léon Vaudoyer (1803–1872), French architect
• Léon Walras (1834–1910), French economist
• Leon Ware (born 1940), American singer, songwriter and producer
• Leon Wilkeson (1952–2001), American bassist
• Leon Norman Williams (1914–1999), British barrister and philatelic writer

See also

• Leo (given name)