Leonidas

leh-oh-NEE-das, lee-oh-NYE-dus

Greek

"lion"

Leonidas Origin and Meaning

The name Leonidas is a boy's name of Greek origin meaning "lion".

Leonidas is an ancient name that has started rising again along with centuries-old names such as Augustus and Cato. The original Leonidas was the most famous of Sparta's warriors, sacrificing his life at the Battle of Thermopylae; there is also a saint Leonidas.

More stately than Leon, more melodious than Leonard, Leonidas is a leonine name that commands respect. In Greek, the name is pronounced leh-oh-NEE-das, but Americans tend to say lee-oh-NYE-dus.

Leonidas Rank in US Top 1000

# 477 in the US

Leonidas Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 646 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Leonidas

• 477 US 2023
• 646 Nameberry 2025
• 286 Future 2028
• 421 England 2023
• 312 Germany 2016

20 Names Similar to Leonidas

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Leonidas.

• Marcellus
• Marius
• Hadrian
• Mordecai
• Octavian
• Amadeus
• Alastor
• Marcello
• Valentin
• Romulus
• Fabian
• Aloysius
• Demetrius
• Tiberius
• Laurent
• Cyril
• Constantine
• Dmitri
• Alexei
• Andreas

Famous People Named Leonidas

• Leonidas I and II Kings of Sparta
• Leonidas Frank "Lon" Chaney American actor
• Leonidas Polk American Confederate Civil War general
• Leonidas E. "Lonie" Paxton American NFL football player
• Leonidas da Silva Brazilian footballer
• Leonidas Donskis Lithuanian politician
• Leonidas Sabanis Greek Olympic weightlifter
• Leonidas Sexton U.S. Congressman from Indiana
• Leonidas Flores (Reyes) Costa Rican footballer
• Leonidas Carstarphen Dyer U.S. Congressman from Missouri
• Dimitri Leonidas English actor
• Georgina Leonidas English actress

The name Leonidas in Pop Culture

• Leonidas Belgian chocolate
• Leonidas Komninos character in "Thread" by Victoria Hislop
• Leonidas "Leo" Valdez character of the series "Heroes of Olympus" and "Trials of Apollo" by Rick Riordan