Louis (given name)
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Louis (Template:PronEng in French, /ˈluːi/ in British English or /ˈluːɪs/ in American English) is the French and English form of the German given name Ludwig[1]; another English variant is spelt Lewis. The German name is composed of the words for "fame" (hlud) and "warrior" (wig) which may be translated to famous warrior or "famous in battle".[2]
Overview
Louis was the name of 17 kings of France, including Louis IX (Saint Louis) who led two crusades, and Louis XIV (the Sun King) who was the ruler of France during the height of its power, the builder of the Palace of Versailles, and the longest reigning monarch in the history of Europe. Rendered fashionable by the Carolingians’ (Dauzat) in 751 -987 AD.
In the Middle Ages this was the hereditary given name of French nobles who claimed descent from Clovis (another version of the same name), the first king of the Franks. One such family were the Bourbons, who provided kings of France from 1589 to 1789. In English speaking countries the anglicized version Lewis is sometimes used.
Variant forms
- Basque - Aloxi, Koldobika, Luki
- Catalan - Lluís
- Catalan Femenine - Lluïsa
- Czech - Ludvík
- Danish = Ludvig
- Dutch - Lodewijk, Lode, Lowie
- English - Lewis, Lewes, Lewie, or Lew; Ludovic
- Esperanto - Ludoviko
- German - Ludwig, Alois
- Greek - Λουδοβίκος (Loudovikos) , feminine Λουίζα (Louiza)
- Hawaiian - Lui
- Hungarian - Lajos
- Irish - Alaois, Alabhaois, Lughaidh
- Irish Feminine - Aloisia
- Italian - Luigi, Lodovico, Ludovico
- Italian Feminine - Luisa, Luigia, Eloisa, Ludovica
- Latin - Ludovicus, Aloysius
- Polish - Ludwik
- Polish Feminine - Ludwika, Luiza
- Portuguese - Luís (Luiz is an archaic form) or Ludovico
- Portuguese Feminine - Luísa (Luiza is an archaic form), Ludovica or Heloísa
- Spanish - Luis ([lu'is] or ['lwis])
- Spanish Feminine - Luisa
- Swedish - Ludvig
- Swedish Feminine - Lova
- Norwegian
- Norwegian - Ludvig, Ludvig
- Welsh - Llewelyn or Llewellyn Definition - In the likeness of a lion.
French variant spelling
Masculine
- Louis - Definition - War famous and/or famed warrior
- Louÿs - Occitan-inspired form
- Loïc - Very frequent Breton form
- Ludovic
- Loual - A name invented by combining Louis and Albert.
- Loewy - A variant form of Loeb
- Lourent - A variant form of Loanda, or Luanda name invented by combining Lou
- Clovis - From the Germanic Chlodwig, a variant of Hlodwig
Feminine
- Louise - French feminine form of Louis.
- Louisa, Éloïse, Héloïse, Lise, Luise - Feminine form variants.
- Louvenia - A name invented by combining the masculine Louis and a form of Lavinia.
- Louelle or Luelle - meaning origin uncertain
- Loudelle - A hybrid name crated by combining Lou (Louise) with Elle or Delle.
- Lovise or Lovis - A Scandinavian-inspired variety.
Unisex
- Louison as a surname or nickname for people named Louis and Louise, cf. Louison Bobet (man), Louison Moreau (woman)
Carriers of the name
Notable people bearing this name include:
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- Many European kings
- Louis René Édouard, cardinal de Rohan (1734–1803), French religious leader & politician
- Louis de Broglie, French physicist and Nobel Prize laureate
- Louis Armstrong, American jazz musician
- Louis Jordan, pioneering American jazz, blues and rhythm & blues musician and songwriter
- Louis Walsh, Irish popular music manager and minor celebrity
- Louis Logic, American underground rapper
- Louis Pasteur, French microbiologist and chemist
- Louis Wirth, American sociologist
- Louis Leakey, British paleontologist
- Louis Jani, Canadian judoka
- Louis van Gaal, Dutch football (soccer) player and coach
- Louis Saha, French professional soccer player
- Louis Wain, painter
- Louis Rukeyser, U.S. business columnist, economic commentator, and television personality
- Louis Chevrolet, racing driver and the founder of the Chevrolet Motor Car Company
- Louis Gerstner, former Chairman and CEO of IBM corporation
- Louis L'Amour, American author of Western fiction
- Louis Sachar, American author of children's books
- Louis Riel, Canadian politician, a founder of Manitoba, and leader of the Métis
- Louis Braille, inventor of braille
- Louis Farrakhan, Afro-American social leader
- Louis Jolliet, French explorer, one of the first Europeans to reach the northern part of the Mississippi River
- Louis Saravolatz, American physician
- Louis Vuitton, French fashion designer
- Louis Michel, Commissioner responsible for Development and Humanitarian Aid.
- Louis Calabro, Toronto artist and DJ
- Lou Costello, American comedian
- Lou Gehrig, American baseball player
- Lou Brock, American baseball player
- Lou Boudreau, American baseball player and manager
- Lou Rawls, American musician
- Lou Ferrigno, American bodybuilder and actor
- Lou Diamond Philips, American actor
- Louis Caron, a backup musician for The Platters