106 Fierce Names That Mean Lion
By Nameberry
Updated Thu Apr 22 2021
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by Pamela Redmond
Baby names meaning lion are among the most appealing of all the trendy new names with animal meanings. The reason has everything to do with the lion's majesty and ferocity as king of the beasts.
Names with lion meanings are particularly appropriate for babies born under the sign of Leo, which runs from late July until late August. Leonine names might also fit a child with tawny golden skin or hair, or one who simply has a loud roar!
The names on this list may literally mean lion, like Lionel, or may relate to famous lions such as Nala, or might have a more figurative relationship with lions, such as Daniel who in the bible entered the lion's den.
If you're looking for a name with a lion-related meaning for your baby boy or baby girl, this list includes a wide-ranging selection.
- Miles
Origin:
English form of MiloMeaning:
"soldier or merciful"Description:
Miles, which has a permanent veneer of cool thanks to jazz great Miles Davis, is a confident and polished boys' name that's an American classic. Always ranking in the US Top 1000, it's been drifting up the charts for the past half century but has never been TOO popular.
- Leo
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"lion"Description:
Leo is a strong-yet-friendly name that was common among the Romans, used for thirteen popes, and is now at its highest point ever in the US thanks in part to Leonardo "Leo" DiCaprio.
- Ellis
Origin:
English surname derived from Elijah or Elias or WelshMeaning:
"benevolent"Description:
Ellis is a former Old Man Name turned gender-neutral choice for the 21st century. It's one of the less used names in the currently popular El-family.
- Eliza
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"pledged to God"Description:
Eliza is a name with a wonderful combination of streamlined zest and Eliza Doolittle charm and spunk. It's a classic that's popular right now -- but not too popular.
- Lilith
Origin:
Assyrian, SumerianMeaning:
"ghost, night monster"Description:
Lilith is derived from the Akkadian word lilitu meaning "of the night." In Jewish folklore she is portrayed as Adam's rejected first wife, who was turned into a night demon for refusing to obey him. Lilith is unrelated to most other Lil- names, with the exception of Lilita, which is the Latvian variation.
- Daniel
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"God is my judge"Description:
Daniel is one of only a handful of male names that sounds both classic and modern, strong yet approachable, and popular but not cliched. It also has a solid Old Testament pedigree. The only real downside: There are about 10,000 Daniels named each year, making it a less than distinctive choice.
- Lavinia
Origin:
Latin, from ancient place name LaviniumDescription:
Lavinia is a charmingly prim and proper Victorian-sounding name which actually dates back to classical mythology, where it was the name of the wife of the Trojan hero Aeneas, who was considered the mother of the Roman people.
- Nathan
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"given"Description:
Nathan is an Old Testament name that's ranked among the Top 100 names for boys for 50 years, and could well stay there for another 50. Strong, solid, and attractive, It's a name familiar to every schoolchild through Nathan Hale, the Revolutionary War spy.
- Charles
Origin:
French from GermanMeaning:
"man, free man"Description:
Charles derives from the Germanic name Karl, meaning "man" or "freeman", and is a royal name in multiple European countries. A famous early bearer is Charlemagne, King of the Franks and Lombards and then Roman Emperor in the 8th-9th centuries. The word for "king" in several languages came from Charles, including Slavic, Russian, and Polish. And, of course, Charles III is the current king of Great Britain.
- Leon
Origin:
Greek variation of LeoMeaning:
"lion"Description:
Leon is one of the leonine names that is extremely hot in Europe right now. Although it peaked here in the 1920s, it is slowly making its way back, and it could climb further with parents wanting a more serious and studious alternative to Leo.
- Celia
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"heavenly"Description:
Celia, splendidly sleek and feminine, is a name that was scattered throughout Shakespeare and other Elizabethan literature, but still manages to feel totally modern.
- Griffin
Origin:
Welsh, variation of GriffithMeaning:
"strong lord"Description:
Griffin is one of the newer and most appealing of the two-syllable Celtic surnames. In English, griffin is the name of a mythological creature, half eagle, half lion. It re-entered the list in 1983 after an absence of 75+ years.
- Damian
Origin:
GreekMeaning:
"to tame, subdue"Description:
Damian has sidestepped its demonic horror movie overtones, leaving a basically friendly and charming Irish image. A well-used upper-class name in England, it is growing in popularity here.
- Lev
Origin:
Hebrew, RussianMeaning:
"heart; lion"Description:
This concise one-syllable name, has two possible derivations and two positive meanings associated with it. In Hebrew, it means "heart", while in Russian it means "lion". So strong and simple Lev has both a soft and a fierce side.
- Luan
Origin:
Portuguese, Albanian, Vietnamese, or Irish "moon; lion; ethics; warrior"Meaning:
"moon; lion; ethics; warrior"Description:
Luan is a handsome, unusual boy's name with surprisingly diverse origins. It's a rare Portuguese name meaning "moon", an Albanian name meaning "lion", a Vietnamese name meaning "justice; ethics", and a Gaelic name meaning "hound; warrior".
- Kiara
Origin:
Variation of the Italian Chiara or the Irish Ciara or Aboriginal Australian, KoreanMeaning:
"light, clear; little dark one; cockatoo; first ray of sun"Description:
Kiara can be considered a variation of both the Italian name Chiara and the Irish name Ciara. Chiara is the Italian form of Clara, meaning "bright" or "clear," while Ciara is the feminine form of male given name Ciar, derived from the old Irish cíar, meaning "dark."
- Ariel
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"lion of God"Description:
Ariel is a male Biblical name, seen there as the messenger of Ezra, and also used as a symbolic name for the city of Jerusalem, while Shakespeare used it for a (male) sprite in The Tempest.
- Idalia
Origin:
GreekMeaning:
"behold the sun"Description:
A pretty, if unusual choice for a summer baby, particularly a girl with an ancestor named Ida. An epithet of the goddess Aphrodite, Idalia is derived from the Greek place name Idalion.
- Laith
Origin:
Arabic, ScottishMeaning:
"lion or wet"Description:
Laith is a cross-cultural boys' name that's among the Top 1000 in the UK, with a leonine meaning in Arabic that is on trend right now. As a Scottish name, it derives from the name of the river Leith in Edinburgh.
- Leona
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"lioness"Description:
A Top 100 name from 1896 to 1921, Leona reached as high as Number 72. Since then, Leona had seemed to be one of the most unfashionable of the pride of lion names, but singer Leona Lewis has done a lot to rejuvenate it. Leona returned to the Top 1000 in 2009 after decades of being away.