Leonidas
Meaning of Leonidas
Leonidas—pronounced lee-uh-NY-dus—is the Latinized cloak wrapped around the Greek Λεωνίδας, a compound of λεων (leōn, “lion”) and the patronymic suffix –ίδας, so literally “son of the lion,” a meaning that strides into history with the quiet authority of a bronze-shod hoplite. Classical annals record King Leonidas I of Sparta, whose last stand at Thermopylae still echoes like a war-horn through Western lore; modern cinema, by way of the film “300,” merely added cinematic varnish to an already gleaming legend. For parents, the name offers an academic pedigree and an undercurrent of valor without descending into overused heroics, its statistical footprint in the United States prowling just beyond the top 400—respectable enough to be noticed, yet uncommon enough to remain distinctive. Leonidas carries a leonine resonance—courage, leadership, and stoic resolve—tempered by a certain classical elegance: the kind of name that feels equally at home etched on a marble frieze or scrawled on today’s kindergarten art project, purring with timeless strength while refraining from any ostentatious roar.
Pronunciation
English
- Pronunced as lee-uh-NY-dus (/liːəˈnaɪdəs/)
U.S. Popularity Chart
States Popularity Chart
Notable People Named Leonidas
| Leonidas Polk was a Confederate general and Episcopal bishop who founded the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Confederate States. |
| Leonidas Harris Berry was an American pioneer in gastroscopy and endoscopy and served as president of the National Medical Association from 1965 to 1966. |
| Leonidas Ralph Mecham served as Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts from 1985 to 2006 after being appointed by Chief Justice Warren Burger. |
| Leonidas Hubbard Jr. was an American journalist and adventurer. |
| Segundo Leonidas Iza Salazar is an Ecuadorian indigenous leader and CONAIE president who led major 2019 protests and ran for president in 2025. |
| Leonidas of Rhodes, known as "Triastes," won three foot races in four consecutive Olympiads and is hailed as one of the greatest sprinters in history. |
| Leonidas Proaño, an Ecuadorian bishop and theologian, was a Nobel Peace Prize candidate and a key figure in liberation theology. |
| Leonidas Andrianopoulos was a Greek forward in football. |
| Leonidas Papagos was a renowned Greek general. |
| Leónidas Lamborghini was an Argentine writer and poet who lived from 1927 to 2009. |
