Etymograph

English

leonine

Leonine comes from Latin leōnīnus ‘of or pertaining to a lion’, and goes back to Ancient Greek λέων.

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEλέωνléōn‘lion’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEleō‘lion’
  3. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEleōnīnus‘of or pertaining to a lion’
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400leonin
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘characteristic of a lion, lionlike’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1669–1696leonine

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEλέωνléōn‘lion’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEleō‘lion’
  3. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEleōnīnus‘of or pertaining to a lion’
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400leonin
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500same form‘characteristic of a lion, lionlike’
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1669–1696leonine

Earliest quotation: 1669–1696, John Aubrey, Samuel Butler (161⅔–1680): “He was of a leonine-coloured haire, sanguinocholerique, middle sized,…”

Linked words

through Latin leō ‘lion’

lion, lei, lev, leu, 1 more

Another origin of leonine

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEλέων‘lion’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEleō‘lion’
  3. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEleōnīnus
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500leonin
  5. Englishtodayleonine

The adjective is derived from Late Middle English leonin, leonine (‘of or pertaining to a person named Leo; specifically Pope Leo IV’), from Latin leōnīnus, from Leo (‘man’s name’) (from leo (‘lion’): see etymology 1) + -īnus (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’). Etymology 2, adjective sense 2 (‘being or relating to a kind of verse with internal rhyme’) is said to refer to a (possibly apocryphal) medieval monk named Leo or Leonius who composed verse with this characteristic; his identity is uncertain, but the composer Léonin (also known as Leo, Leoninus, or Leonius; flourished 1135–1201) has been suggested.folk etymology The source marks this as unproven or a folk etymology. Quoted, not asserted. Alternatively, the word may refer to Pope Leo II (c. 611–683): see the c. 1760–1761 quotation.disputed Scholars disagree here; the competing view is quoted as the source gives it. The noun is derived from the adjective.

Another origin of leonine

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEλέων‘lion’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEleō‘lion’
  3. Medieval Latinc. 600–1500leōnīnusas leōnīna
  4. Englishtodayleonine

Learned borrowing from Medieval Latin leōnīna + English -ine (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’). Leōnīna is a feminine singular form of Latin leōnīnus (see etymology 1), and may refer to the use of a lion motif on the coin: see the 1787 quotation.

Today it means

adj Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a lion; lionlike.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Ancient Greek λέων / leonine

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