Leslie

Meaning

In the excerpted 19th-century source, Leslie is described as a name that became exclusively Scottish through the Leslie family, with a possibly Norman origin. The text also says the Highlanders called it Tormaid and treats that as its Gaelic form, though it does not give a firm literal meaning for Leslie itself. It was later sometimes confused with Nicolas, and a French-looking form appears in Froissart as Nesle.

Origin

Fun fact

Yonge notes that the name was once so strongly Scottish that it was associated with particular historic families and even had a Gaelic form used by Highlanders.