LEO

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Leo the Lion, from Latin leo, 'lion', the word was borrowed by the Greeks from some unknown source. The Latin word is related to Greek leon, leontos (earlier *lewon, *lewontos), which appears in the name of the Spartan king Leonidas, Lion's son. The Greek word is somehow related to Coptic labai, laboi, lioness. In turn, Coptic labai is borrowed from a Semitic source related to Hebrew labi and Akkadian labbu [AHD]. Compare also Homeric liz, 'lion', which is probably a loan word from Hebrew layish, 'lion' [Klein]. Related names: Lionel, Leander, Leonard, Leonid, Leonine. In Greek and Roman myth Leo represented the Nemean Lion slain by Hercules, giving the titles for this constellation: Nemeaeus, Nemeas Alumnus, Nemees Terror, Nemeaeum Monstrum. The first of Hercules' twelve labors was to slay the Nemean Lion and bring back its skin to his cousin Eurystheus who had set twelve labors for him.