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 [ 2 syll. leo-nar(d), le-ona-rd ] The boy name Leonard is pronounced as LEHNerD KEY. Leonard is used chiefly in the English language and it is derived from Germanic origins. Two-element name derived from the elements 'leon' meaning lion ; 'hart' meaning brave, hardy. The name was borne by Saint Leonard of Noblac (-559), who was a Frankish noble in the court of Clovis I. It was also famous from the Italian Renaissance artist and scientist Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519). The name was brought into England by the Normans, but did not appear commonly in the Middle Ages. It later enjoyed a significant revival in the 19th century. It is now also used by Jews. The name Leonarda (English) is the female form of Leonard. The name Leonard is used to a great extent; it has 38 variants that are used in both English and other languages. Variants of Leonard used in English include Lenard (also used in German), Lenn, Lennard (also used in German and Scandinavian), Leon (also used in Czech, German, French, Italian, Polish, and Spanish), Lon, Lonnie, and Lonny. Other English variants include the short forms Len and Leo (also used in Dutch, French, German, and Italian), and the pet forms Lee, Lennie, and Lenny. Foreign variants of Leonard include Laya (Russian), Leendert (Dutch), Lelle (Scandinavian), Lennart (German and Scandinavian), Lenne (Scandinavian), Lennert (German), Leonardino (Italian), Leonardo (Portuguese, Italian, and Spanish), Leonards (Lithuanian), Leonek (Polish), Leongard (Russian), Leonhard (German), Leonhards (Latvian), Leonid (Russian and German), Leonildo (Italian), Leons (Latvian), Léonard (French), Lienard (French), Lienhard (German), Linard (French, German, and Rhaeto-Romanic), Linek (Polish), Lionardo (Italian), Lleonard (Catalan), Nardek (Polish), and Nenne (Scandinavian). Another foreign variant is the short form Leen (Dutch). Leonard is a classic favorite. At present it is still fairly popular as a baby name for boys, though it was in more widespread use previously. At the height of its usage in 1920, 0.501% of baby boys were given the name Leonard. Its ranking then was #38. The baby name has since experienced a substantial loss in popularity, and is of occasional use in recent years. In 2008, its usage was only 0.018% and its ranking #621. Within the group of boy names directly linked to Leonard, Leonardo (Portuguese, Italian, and Spanish) was the most popular. In 2008, its use outnumbered Leonard's by 6 times. Baby names that sound like Leonard include Lenard (English and German), Lennard (English, German, and Scandinavian), Léonard (French), Lammert (Dutch and German), Lennart (German and Scandinavian), Lennert (German), Lienhard (German), Linard (French, German, and Rhaeto-Romanic), Lleonard (Catalan), Leonhard (German), Lienard (French), Lionardo (Italian), and Leonardo (Portuguese, Italian, and Spanish). Details of famous persons named Leonard: KEY: Pronunciation for Leonard: L as in "lee (L.IY)" ; EH as in "Ed (EH.D)" ; N as in "knee (N.IY)" ; ER as in "hurt (HH.ER.T)" ; D as in "dee (D.IY)"   |
