Wikipedia
R.H. Allen:
Star Names
Ian Ridpath:
Star Tales
Universe Guide
Sea and Sky:
Constellations
IAU
Map
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Wikipedia |
R.H. Allen: Star Names |
Ian Ridpath: Star Tales |
Universe Guide |
Sea and Sky: Constellations |
IAU Map |
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LeoStar Lore |
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| Leo is a Zodiac constellation in the northern celestial hemisphere. Its name is Latin for lion. Due to its many bright stars and a distinctive shape, it is one of the most easily recognizable constellations in the sky. |
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Ancient Mesopotamia
Archaeological evidence suggests that the Mesopotamians had a Lion constellation as early as 4000 BC.
J.H. Rogers points out that
early Mesopotamian artwork depicted large numbers of lions, bulls and (to a lesser amount) scorpions as symbols of power.
 Some mythologists believe that in Sumeria, Leo represented the monster Humbaba, a monstrous giant with a lion's face. Sources:Wikipedia, J.H. Rogers: Origins of the ancient constellations., Gavin White: Babylonian Star-Lore |
Lion at Babylon's Ishtar GatePicture taken by the author
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In Akkadia, the first ancient empire of
Mesopotamia (ca. 2334 – 2154 BC), an asterism, consisting of
ε,
η,
γ,
ζ,
μ and
ε Leonis
was known as Gis-mes, the Curved Weapon (see below).
Source: R.H. Allen |
Gis-mes;
Souce: redd.it |
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Greek Mythology
Greek mythology adopted the visualization of the constellation as a lion and identified
Leo as the Nemean Lion which was killed by Heracles
during the first of his twelve labours.
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Heracles and the Nemean LionMosaic in Paphos, Cypriot stamp Source: placeresgriegos.blogspot.com
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Ancient Rome
The Roman poet Ovid called the constellation Herculeus Leo and Violentus Leo.
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Heracles fighting the Nemean LionRoman era relief, 2nd century AD Souce: Wikipedia |
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In his list of constellations, Roman natural philosopher Pliny the Elder describes a constellation
called "The Sickle, consisting of
η,
γ,
ζ,
μ and
ε Leonis, with
Regulus (α Leo) being the handle.
The asterism predates Roman astronomy. In Akkadia, the first ancient empire of Mesopotamia (ca. 2334 – 2154 BC) it was known as Gis-mes, the Curved Weapon; in Khwarazm and Sogdia in northeastern Persia, it was called Khamshish, the Scimitar. Source: R.H. Allen |
The Sickle in Leo;
Map based on seasky.org
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Medieval Europe - Vexillum
Roughly one half of today's constellation was defined by Ptolemy in the first century. The other half was the
result of the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th century.
In the 1,400 years between these two eras, only two new constellations creations were added to the European sky.
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Vexillum in Il Dittamondo, 1355
Souce: atlascoelestis.com |
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Scot describes Vexillum's location as partially in Leo and partially in Virgo.
From the 13th to the 16th century, Vexillum was displayed in European astrological and astronomical manuals as an equal among the constellations of the Zodiac. With the dawn of the Age of Enlightenment and the separation of Astrology and Astronomy, the constellation slowly disappeared. Source: atlascoelestis.com |
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al-asad - the original Lion
Before abd al-rahman al-sufi and other Arabic astronomers adopted
Ptolemy's constellations, people on the
Arabian Peninsula had their own way to navigate the sky, creating constellations like Lam, Ostriches and
Vulture.
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The largest of these Arabian constellations is al-asad, the Lion. Covering 135 angular
degrees of the northern sky, it is perhaps the largest constellation ever conceived by stargazers. R.H. Allen (in
Star Names: Their Lore and Meaning) called is a "monstrosity", Danielle Adams, (in the Arab Star Calendar)
much more appropriately calls it a "Celestial Complex".
Danielle Adams provides an extensive description of all sections of this celestial complex. She writes: |
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"The Lion of ancient Arabia was so massive that it roared from January to May, stretching across three seasons in its pre-dawn stellar settings, according to
the rain star calendar of Qushayr. The cold season of winter continues with the setting of the Two Forearms and then the Nose of the Lion. The setting of the
Forehead of the Lion marks the end of winter and the onset of the warm spring rains. Some weeks later, the Two Shanks of the Lion set about 40 days apart,
defining between them the rainy portion of the summer.
All of this seasonal rain activity unfolds over the course of about four months, between the morning settings of the two brilliant pairs of stars (its Two Forearms and its Two Shanks) that roughly define the boundaries of the Lion." |
Colored reproduction of al-sufi's illustrationSource: Stuart Rankin; taken at the Library of Congress |
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Here is a listing of all stars of the different segments of the al-asad celestial complex.
Clicking on the headline name of a segment takes you to an extensive description of that segment in the Arab Star Calendar, which provides a lot more valuable information. |
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The Clenched Forearm adh-dhira’ al-maqbuda الذراعة المقبوضة Procyon (α Cmi) Gomeisa (β Cmi)
The Extended Forearm
Collectively, The Clenched Forearm
The Claws
The Two Nostrils
The Sneeze |
Collectively, The Two Nostrils and The Sneeze are The Nose of the Lion anf al-asad - أنف الأسد
The Eyes
The Eyelashes
The Forehead
The Mane
The Sheath of the Penis |
The Two Haunches al-warikan - الوركان Zavijava (β Vir) Porrima (γ Vir) Minelauva (δ Vir) Vindemiatrix (ε Vir) Zaniah (η Vir)
The Two Shanks
The Rump
The Tail Hair
The Tail Hair Strikes |
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In her Star Calendar Blog, Danielle Adams kept the memories of this magnificent
constellation alive. Check out her essays on the Roaring of the Lion, the Dog Tooth of Time and the Sky-Raisers. |
The Protracted Roaring of the LionAbundant rains from an ancient beast |
The Smiling Dog Tooth of TimeThe Lion brings warmer weather |
The Setting of the Sky-RaisersWidespread rains of summer |
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Medieval Islamic Astronomy
Throughout the Middle East, the constellation is called Lion in many languages. The Persians called it Ser or Shir;
the Turks Artan; the Syrians Aryo; the Jews Arye; all meaning "lion."
in the Book of Fixed Stars, Persian astronomer
Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi adopted
Ptolemy's constellations, but there was an original Arabic Lion
constellation long before that (see below).
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Official names derived from Arabic origins are shown in bold.
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Regulus (α Leo) is Latin for "prince" or "little king."
In Arabic, the star was called qalb al-asad, meaning "Heart of the Lion." While in this case the Latin name prevailed, many of the other stars in Leo
kept their Arabic names.
Source:Wikipedia
Denebola (β Leo) is shortened from Deneb Alased, from the Arabic phrase ðanab al-asad
"tail of the lion."
Algieba (γ Leo) originated from the Arabic al-jabhah, meaning "the forehead."
Zosma (δ Leo) is derived from the Arabic al-zubra, which can mean both "Shoulder" and
"Lion's Mane."
Ras Elased Australis (ε Leo) and
Ras Elased Borealis (μ Leo) are combinations of Arabic and Latin. The original names were
al rās al asad al janūbiyyah and al rās al asad al shamaliyy, meaning "The Southern Star in the Lion's Head" and "The Northern Star in the Lion's Head",
respectively. "Southern" and "Northern" were later replaced with the Latin expressions Australis and Borealis.
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15th century copy copy ofal-Sufi's illustration Pergamenthandschrift M II 141, Source:atlascoelestis.com
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Chertan (θ Leo) is derived from the Arabic al-kharātān "two small ribs", originally
referring to δ and θ Leonis.
Source:Wikipedia
Adhafera (ζ Leo) comes from the Arabic aḍ-ḍafīrah "the braid/curl", a reference to the lion's mane.
Al Jabhah (η Leo) means "the Front" or "the Forehead" (of the lion).
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Al Minliar al Asad (κ Leo) means the "Muzzle of the Lion."
Source:Wikipedia
Alterf (λ Leo) comes from the Arabic aṭ-ṭarf, meaning "the view" or "the Eyes"
(of the lion). .
Subra (ο Leo) is derived from the Arabic Arabic al-zubra, which can mean, "Shoulder",
"Lion's Mane" or "upper part of the back."
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Leo in The Book of the Birth of Iskandar Source: wellcomecollection.org |
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Ancient India
In Hindu Astronomy, the constellation Leo stretches across three Lunar
Manisons, called Nakashtras.
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Ancient China
In Chinese, Leo is written
獅子座
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Asterisms in LeoMap based on seasky.org
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"On Chinese star charts the Sickle of Leo is recognizable, but as part of a rather different constellation figure. From the top of the Sickle extended
a snaking line that took in Lambda and
Kappa Leonis before heading north into Lynx.
In all, 17 stars were involved in the chain, including Regulus and Omicron and Rho Leonis either side of it; the whole formation was known as Xuānyuán, the Yellow Dragon. Denebola (β Leo) was not part of Xuānyuán, but nevertheless was connected to it in myth. In China, Denebola was called Huángdìzuò the Yellow Emperor. This name comes from a legendary ruler who is credited with being the main founder of Chinese civilization; the Yellow Dragon (Xuānyuán) snaking among the other stars of Leo was said to be his image immortalized in the sky. So Xuānyuán, with the nearby Huángdìzuò, is one of the few Chinese star patterns that can boast a mythology comparable to that of the Greek constellations. Four faint stars to the north, south, west, and east of Huángdìzuò governed the four seasons. Taken together, Huángdìzuò and its companions formed a group known as Wǔdìzuò, the Five Emperors (or deities). Their chariots were represented by the five stars that outline the shape of Auriga". [End of Ian Ridpath quote]. |
The Yellow Dragon, personification of the Yellow EmperorSource: Wikipedia
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Also part of Wǔdìzuò are 88 Leonis and a number of faint stars in Leo.
Wǔdì ("Five Deities") or Wǔshén ("Five Gods") are, in Chinese canonical texts and common Chinese religion, the five-fold manifestation of
the supreme God of Heaven.
Xuānyuán is part of the 25th Lunar Mansion, called Xīng (Star). For the following, I partially quote Ian Ridpath, added with remarks coming from Wikipedia: To the north of this group of five celestial gods lay the real ruling Emperor’s heir or crown prince, Tàizǐ, represented by 93 Leonis, with Cóngguān, his personal assistant, hovering at a respectful distance (92 Leonis), and a bodyguard, Hǔbēn (72 Leonis), keeping watch. |
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Wǔdìzuò, Tàizǐ, Cóngguān and Hǔbēn fell within a larger area called Tài Wēi Yuán,
representing a court where the Chinese Emperor met with his privy council, which extended into neighboring Virgo.
(Wikipedia refers to this area as the
Supreme Palace enclosure.
One of the boundary walls of Tài Wēi Yuán was marked out by a chain of five stars heading southwards from Delta via Theta, Iota, and Sigma Leonis to Beta Virginis. This wall is called Tàiwēiyòuyuán, the "Right Wall." A fainter line of four stars stretching northwards from Leo into Leo Minor formed Shǎowēi, seen as either a delegation of nobility welcoming Huángdìzuò as he approached Tài Wēi Yuán, or a retinue of scholarly advisors. Sources differ as to the identity of these stars, but they could have been 53 Leonis to 41 Leonis Minoris. This same line later became known as Chángyuán (the "Long Wall"), an outer protective barrier for Tài Wēi Yuán. Among the smaller constellations that the Chinese imagined in this area, Xi Leonis, together with Psi and Omega Leonis were Jiǔqí, the banner of a wine maker or merchant, possibly associated with the kitchen (Wàichú) in Hydra to the south. This is the only formation within the boundaries of Leo that is part of the 24 Lunar Mansion, called Liǔ (Willow). The stars around Chi Leonis, straddling the ecliptic represented Língtái, an astronomical observatory. Tau, Phi and Upsilon Leonis formed Míngtáng, the "The Hall of Glory" according to Wikipedia or the "bright hall" according to Ian Ridpath, an administrative center where the Emperor announced the annual calendar of events at the start of each year; the "brightness" in its title might be a reference to the luminous presence of the Emperor himself. Sources: Wikipedia and Ian Ridpath |
The Great Wall; Wikipedia
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/Gwi; Southern Africa
Regulus (α Leo) is called /edzini, the Fire-Finisher by
the /Gwi people of southern Afric.
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Bushmen at a fireSource: africageographic.com |
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Modern Day Fiction
Wolf 359 (CN_Leonis) is a red dwarf of apparent magnitude 13.5 and thus can only be seen with a large
telescope. However, at approximately 7.8 light-years away it is the seventh-closest stellar system to the Sun. Thus, even though it is suspected to
be a flare star, it has attracted the attention of science fiction authors, filmmakers, and game developers. For a comprehensive list, see Wikipedia's
Wolf 359 in Fiction.
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Flags and Coat of Arms |
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The flag of the city of Portsmouth, England, shows a golden star and a crescent moon. Both have
been the City's arms for over 800
years and were a taken from an early version of the coat of arms of King Richard I.
One interpretation suggest that the star is Regulus, which at the time was commonly known a "Cor Leonis", or "Heart of the Lion" - making the arms a play on words on Richard's nickname "Lionheart". Source: Flags of the World |
Portsmouth Flag; Wikipedia
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