Leviticus. That book of the Old Testament which sets forth the laws pertaining to the priests or Levites, the descendants of Levi, the third son of Jacob and Leah.
Lewisham. From Leesham, the home or family settlement in the meadow. See “[Lee].”
Leyden. Originally Lugdunum, the Latinised form of the Celtic llwch, a morass, and dun, a hill, fortress.
Leyton. The town in the lea or meadow.
Leytonstone. A corruption of “Leytonstowe,” the stock or wooded place in the vicinity of a meadow.
Lhassa. A Tibetan word for “full of gods.”
Liberal. The modern designation of the Progressive or “Whig” Party. This arose out of Lord Byron’s political magazine, The Liberal, in 1828, though the name was not formally assumed until the agitation for the Reform Bill in 1831.
Liberator. The surname of Simon Bolivar, who established the independence of Peru.
Liberia. An independent republic of free Negroes on the west coast of Africa. The word is derived from the Latin[Latin] liber, free, and the Celtic suffix ia, country.
Library. From the Latin librarium, a bookcase, through liber, a book.