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Leona

lee-O-nuh; LEH-o-na
Latin
"lioness"
Brynn McKeon
By Brynn McKeon
Updated Tue Sep 30 2025

Leona Origin and Meaning

The name Leona is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "lioness".

A strong, grounded choice that still has plenty of energy and charm, Leona is the feminine form of Leon, itself derived from the Greek word for "lion". Associated with courage, leadership, and royalty — and the star sign of July and August — Leona is popular in Croatia and Sweden, but familiar across the US, the UK, and continental Europe.

Leona was popular in the US back in the early 1900s, reaching the Top 70 in 1904. It remained in the charts right up until 1981 when it disappeared until 2009. This resurgence coincided with a spike in popularity in the name in the UK too, from 2007 to 2009, around the time that singer Leona Lewis won The X Factor and her song Bleeding Love reached Number One in 35 counties.

It may feel like an exaggeration to attribute its return to one person, however, Leona also appeared fairly briefly in the charts in Northern Ireland, The Netherlands, and Switzerland in the same period, while in France, it returned to the country's Top Name listings in 2008, after a 50 year absence.

Given to more than 600 girls in the US in a recent year, it is typically pronounced as lee-o-nuh in English, but leh-o-na or lay-o-na may be heard in Czechia, Croatia, Sweden, and the Netherlands. Nicknames Leo, Lena, Lolo, Lee, and Leni make it a versatile choice.

# 488 in the US

Leona Rank in US Top 1000

# 280 on Nameberry

Leona Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Popularity of the name Leona

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Famous People Named Leona

  • Leona Louise Lewis
    British pop singer
  • Leona Kristina Naess
    British singer,songwriter, daughter of mountaineer Arne Naess
  • Lena Mindy "Leona" Roberts Helmsley
    American hotelier dubbed the "Queen of Mean"
  • (María de la Soledad) Leona Camila Vicario (Fernández de San Salvador)
    Mexican journalist and revolutionary
  • Leona Harriet Woods Marshall Libby
    youngest and only female physicist on the Manhattan Project
  • Leona "Binx" Walton
    American model
  • Leona Kate Vaughan
    Welsh actress
  • Leona Dalrymple
    American actress
  • Leona Hutton
    American actress
  • Leona Cavalli (born Alleyona Canedo da Silva)
    Brazilian actress
  • Leona Celinda Doty
    birth name of Leona Roberts, American actress

The name Leona in Pop Culture

  • Leona the Radiant Dawn
    character in the video game "League of Legends"
  • Leona Stoney
    character on the APTN show "Blackstone"
  • Leona Heidern
    character in The King of Fighters video game series
  • Leona Ozaki
    character in manga and anime Dominion
  • Leona Lion
    character on TV series Between the Lions
  • Leaky Leona
    a character on animated series "Codename: Kids Next Door"

International Variations of the name Leona

  • Léonne
    French
  • Liona
    Hawaiian
  • Lyonechika
    Russian
  • Leonida
    Italian
  • Leonita
    Spanish
  • Léonie
    French
  • Leonor
    Spanish
  • Léonette
    French
  • Lyonya
    Russian

The name Leona in Nameberry Blog Posts