Etymology

leo

L1E1O1

Today it means: A fairy chess piece which moves analogously to the xiangqi cannon and queen, moving either orthogonally or diagonally and must hop over a piece of either side to capture. Full definition →

Latin leō ← Sumerian 𒌨𒄞𒆷
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The story

  1. Sumerian · derived from𒌨𒄞𒆷“lion; name of constellation”
  2. Latin · derived fromleō“lion”
  3. English todayLeo

From Latin leō (“lion”), calque of Ancient Greek λέων (léōn), calque of Akkadian 𒉈𒍑 (nēšu)/Akkadian 𒌨𒄞𒆷 (urgulû), from Sumerian 𒌨𒄞𒆷 (UR.GU.LA, “lion; name of constellation”). Doublet of Leon, leu, lev, lion, and Lyon.

Words from the same roots

Latinleō all →

lionLeonleulionelleontomorphic

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.