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Contribute to, or edit, this collection of community wisdom on the name Lionel!

Comments and insights on the name Lionel: | Edit

I met someone once who spelled his name Lyonal and I named one of my characters that, with that spelling.

Personal experiences with the name Lionel: | Edit

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Nicknames for Lionel: | Edit

Onel

Meanings and history of the name Lionel: | Edit

Meaning of the name (Latin)young lion, lion; (Germanic)lion, brave, hardy

3 syll. lio-nel, li-on-el The boy name Lionel is pronounced as LAYahNahL †. Lionel is used predominantly in the English and French languages, and it is derived from Latin origins. The name is of the meaning young lion.

In addition, Lionel is a variant form (English and French) of the name Leo (Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Czech, and Hawaiian).

Lionel has 17 variant forms that are used in both English and other languages. Variant forms used in English include Leonel (used in Spanish too), Leonila, Lional, Lionell, Lionnell, Lionnello, Lonell, Lonnell, Lyinell, Lynel, Lynnell, Lyonelo, Lyonnel, Lyonnell, and Lyonnello. The variant spelling Lyonel is another English form. A variant form of Lionel in other languages is Leonello (Italian).

Lionel is an unusual baby name for boys. Its usage peaked modestly in 1934 with 0.032% of baby boys being given the name Lionel. Its ranking then was #297. The baby name has since experienced a steep loss in popularity, and is currently of irregular use. In 2009, among the group of boy names directly linked to Lionel, Leo was the most popular.

Famous real-life people named Lionel: | Edit

Jazz Musician Lionel Hampton, born 20 April 1908 - 31 August 2002, Louisville, Kentucky.
Pop Musician Lionel Richie, born 20 June 1949, Tuskegee, Alabama.
Soccer Player Lionel Messi, born 24 June 1987, Rosario, Argentina.

Lionel in song, story & screen: | Edit

Sir Lionel, a knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend
Lionel Tannenbaum in Down at the Dinghy by JD Salinger