Meaning: Its source is a Latin expression meaning "Lion."
This name is spelled with an accent in some languages: in French, Léon; and in Spanish, León.
Languages: This boy's name is used in German, English, Italian, French, Spanish and Polish.
Compound Forms: Leonel
Feminine Forms: Leona
Popularity: The name Leon ranked 491st in popularity for males of all ages in a sample of 2000-2003 Social Security Administration statistics and 162nd in popularity for males of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.
This name is highly rated in the 1990 U.S. Census popularity survey of all ages, but after 1960 does not appear in the state data listing the most popular baby names.
Arts and Music
- Leon ''Bix'' Beiderbecke (born 1903, died 1931)
American jazz musician.
- Coronet player and composer known for his unique phrasing, clear tone, and unorthodox harmonies (see list of Critics' Picks for the Jazz Hall of Fame)
- Leon Huff
American songwriter.
- Wrote ''''Love Train'''' and ''''Only the Strong Survive'''' (see list of Songwriters)
- Leon Kirchner
- 1967 Pulitzer Prize winner for Music Composition (see list of Winners of the Pulitzer Prize for Music)
- Leon Redbone
American singer.
- Musical guest on ''''Saturday Night Live'''' (see list of Musical Guests on ''Saturday Night Live'')
- Leon Russell (born 1941)
American singer. Original name: Russell Bridges.
- Musical guest on ''''Saturday Night Live'''' (see list of Musical Guests on ''Saturday Night Live'')
Leadership
- Leon V.A. Bourgeois (born 1851, died 1925)
French statesman who drafted the framework for the League of Nations.
- 1920 Nobel Prize winner for Peace (see list of Nobel Peace Prize Winners)
- Leon Jouhaux (born 1879, died 1954)
French socialist and union organizer who helped found the International Labour Organisation.
- 1951 Nobel Prize winner for Peace (see list of Nobel Peace Prize Winners)
- Leon Machiz
- CEO of Fortune 500 company AVNET (see list of 1996 Fortune 500 Company CEOs)
- Leon Trotsky (born 1879, died 1940)
Russian communist leader who spent much of his life in exile and was finally murdered in Mexico.
- Though a close associate of Lenin, he was defeated by Stalin in the power struggle that followed Lenin''s death (see list of Miscellaneous Political Leaders)
Miscellaneous
- A. Leon Higginbotham
American jurist.
- 1996 Spingarn Medal winner (see list of Spingarn Medal Winners)
- 1995 recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom (see list of Presidential Medal of Freedom Winners)
- Leon Howard Sullivan (born 1922)
American clergyman and civil-rights activist.
- 1971 Spingarn Medal winner (see list of Spingarn Medal Winners)
- 1991 recipient of Presidential Medal of Freedom (see list of Presidential Medal of Freedom Winners)
Science and Philosophy
- Leon N. Cooper
American physicist who helped develop the theory of superconductivity.
- 1972 Nobel Prize winner in Physics, with John Bardeen and John Schrieffer (see list of Winners of the Nobel Prize for Physics)
- Leon M. Lederman (born 1922)
American physicist known for his studies of neutrinos.
- 1988 Nobel Prize winner in Physics, with Melvin Schwartz and Jack Steinberger (see list of Winners of the Nobel Prize for Physics)
- 1965 National Medal of Science winner (see list of National Medal of Science Winners)
Sports
- Leon Allen ''Goose'' Goslin (born 1900, died 1971)
Baseball player.
- 1928 American League Batting Champion (see list of American League Batting Champions)
- Inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1968 (see list of Members of the Baseball Hall of Fame)
- Leon Hart
American football player.
- 1950 National Football League number-one draft pick (see list of Football #1 Draft Picks)
- 1949 Heisman Memorial Trophy winner (see list of Heisman Trophy Winners)
- 1949 Associated Press Athlete of the Year (see list of Associated Press Athletes of the Year)
- Leon Scieur
- 1921 Tour de France champion (see list of Tour de France Winners)
- Leon Stukelj
Yugoslavian athlete.
- 1924 Olympic gymnastics gold medal winner for Individual All Around (see list of Gold Medalists in the Individual All-around)
- 1924 Olympic gymnastics gold medal winner for Horizontal Bars; 1928 gold medal winner for Rings (see list of Gold Medalists in Individual Gymnastics Events)
- Leon C. Wilmot (born 1914)
American skiing enthusiast known for his role in the development of snow making.
- Elected to the Colorado Ski Hall of Fame in 1997 (see list of Members of the Colorado Ski Hall of Fame)
Stage and Screen
- Leon Askin (born 1907)
Austrian actor.
- Portrayed Gen. Albert Burkhalter (see list of Actors on ''Hogan's Heroes'')
- Leon Carp
Fictional character.
- Portrayed by Martin Mull (see list of Characters on ''Roseanne'')
- Leon Errol (born 1881, died 1951)
Australian actor and dancer.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Picture (see list of Movie Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
- Leon
Fictional character.
- Portrayed by Clint Howard (see list of Characters on ''The Andy Griffith Show'')
- Leon Shamroy
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Picture (see list of Movie Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
The Literary World
- Leon Dash
- 1995 Pulitzer Prize winner for Explanatory Journalism (see list of Winners of the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Journalism)
- Leon Edel (born 1907, died 1997)
American biographer.
- 1963 National Book Award winner for Nonfiction, for Henry James, Volume II: The Conquest of London, 1870-1881, and Volume III: The Middle Years, 1881-1895 (see list of Winners of the National Book Award for Nonfiction)
- 1963 Pulitzer Prize winner for Biography/Autobiography, for Henry James, Volume II: The Conquest of London, 1870-1881, and Volume III: The Middle Years, 1881-1895 (see list of Winners of the Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography)
- Leon F. Litwack (born 1929)
American historian.
- 1980 Pulitzer Prize winner for History, for Been in the Storm So Long (see list of Winners of the Pulitzer Prize for History)
- Leon Uris (born 1924)
American novelist.
- Wrote Exodus (see list of Prose Writers of the 20th Century)
- Author of the 1976 best-selling novel Trinity (see list of Bestselling Fiction Authors in the U.S.)
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| Léonne | ![]() |
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Teasing Nicknames:
- Leo
- Leo the Lion
- Leon the Peon
- Leonisky
Meaning: Its source is a Latin expression meaning "Lion."
Popularity: The name Leon ranked 3370th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.
Though this name appears on the 1990 U.S. Census lists, it is used by only a small percentage of the general population.
This name is usually reserved for boys. In part, it could owe its position on the US Census popularity list to incorrectly filled-out census forms.
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