Laurent is a French masculine

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

origin. It is used in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, and other

French-speaking countries The French language became an international language, the second Lingua franca, international language alongside Latin, in the Middle Ages, "from the fourteenth century onwards". It was not by virtue of the power of the Kingdom of France: '"... ...

. The name was derived from the Roman surname

Laurentius Laurentius is a Latin given name and surname that means "''From Laurentum''" (a city near Rome). It is possible that the place name ''Laurentum'' is derived from the Latin ''laurus'' (" laurel"). People with the name include: In Early Christiani ...

, which meant "from Laurentum". It can also be derived from the Old Greek word Lavrenti, meaning "the bright one, shining one".

Laurentum Laurentum was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman city of Latium situated between Ostia Antica, Ostia and Lavinium, on the west coast of the Italian Peninsula southwest of Rome. Roman writers regarded it as the original capital of Italy, before Lavin ...

was an ancient Roman city of Latium situated between Ostia and

Lavinium Lavinium was a port city of Latium, to the south of Rome, midway between the Tiber river at Ostia Antica, Ostia and Antium. The coastline then, as now, was a long strip of beach. Lavinium was on a hill at the southernmost edge of the ''Silva La ...

, on the west coast of the Italian peninsula southwest of

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, and its name is either descended from many groves of ''

Laurus nobilis ''Laurus nobilis'' is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub with green, glabrous (smooth) leaves. It is in the flowering plant family Lauraceae. According to Flora Cretica (Kleinsteuber Books, 2024, ISBN 978-3-9818110-5-6) the stem can be 1 ...

'' (bay tree), or, according to

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

, a single "sacred" laurel tree. The feminine form of Laurent is

Laurence Laurence is in modern use as an English masculine and a French feminine given name. The modern English masculine name is a variant of Lawrence and originates from a French form of the Latin ''Laurentius'', a name meaning "man from Laurentum" ...

Politics

* Charles François Laurent (1856–1939), French senior public official and diplomat * Claude de Roux de Saint-Laurent (died 1689), French soldier, governor of Saint Christophe * Laurent Durocher (1788–1861), member of the Michigan Senate and House of Representatives *

Louis St. Laurent Louis Stephen St. Laurent (; February 1, 1882 – July 25, 1973) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 12th prime minister of Canada from 1948 to 1957. Born and raised in southeastern Quebec, St. Laurent was a leading la ...

(1882–1973), twelfth Prime Minister of Canada * Jean-Luc Laurent (born 1957), French politician * Jeanne St. Laurent (1886–1966), wife of Louis St. Laurent * Laurent Alexandre (born 1972), French politician * Laurent Castillo (born 1962), French politician *

Laurent-Désiré Kabila Laurent-Désiré Kabila (; 27 November 1939 – 16 January 2001) usually known as Laurent Kabila or Kabila the Father (American English, US: ), was a Congolese rebel and politician who served as the third president of the Democratic Republic of t ...

(1939–2001), President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1997 to 2001 * Laurent Gbagbo (born 1945), President of Côte d'Ivoire from 2000 to 2011 * Laurent Grandguillaume (born 1978), member of the French Parliament from 2012 to 2017 * Laurent Lamothe (born 1972), Haiti Foreign Minister & Haiti Prime Minister 2011-2012

Mathematics

Laurent Schwartz Laurent-Moïse Schwartz (; 5 March 1915 – 4 July 2002) was a French mathematician. He pioneered the theory of Distribution (mathematics), distributions, which gives a well-defined meaning to objects such as the Dirac delta function. He was awar ...

, French mathematician *

Paul Matthieu Hermann Laurent Paul Matthieu Hermann Laurent (2 September 1841 in Luxembourg City – 19 February 1908 in Paris, France) was a French mathematician. Despite his large body of works, Laurent series In mathematics, the Laurent series of a complex function f( ...

, French mathematician *

Pierre Alphonse Laurent Pierre Alphonse Laurent (18 July 1813 – 2 September 1854) was a French mathematician, engineer, and Military Officer best known for discovering the Laurent series, an expansion of a function into an infinite power series, generalizing the Tayl ...

, French mathematician best known as the discoverer of the Laurent series

Science

* Auguste Laurent (1807–1853), French chemist * Christian Laurent, French engineer *

Joseph Jean Pierre Laurent Joseph Jean Pierre Laurent (or Joseph Laurent) (died 1900) was a French amateur astronomer and chemist who discovered the asteroid 51 Nemausa in 1858, for which he was a recipient of the Lalande Prize awarded by the French Academy o ...

, a French astronomer * Laurent Lantieri, French plastic surgeon who is a pioneer in the field of face transplantation *

Raymond Laurent Raymond Ferdinand Louis-Philippe Laurent (16 May 1917 – 3 February 2005) was a Belgian herpetologist, who specialized in African and South American amphibians and reptiles. He published more than 200 scientific articles and book chapters. Severa ...

, Belgian herpetologist

Sports

* Emelyne Laurent (born 1998), French footballer *

Laurent Blanc Laurent Robert Blanc (; born 19 November 1965) is a French professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a centre-back and is the manager of Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad Club (J ...

, French association football manager * Laurent Capet, French volleyball player * Laurent Chambertin, French volleyball player * Laurent Desbiens, French cyclist * Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (born 1991), Canadian player of American football with the Kansas City Chiefs *

Laurent Fignon Laurent Patrick Fignon (; 12 August 1960 – 31 August 2010) was a French professional road bicycle racer who won the Tour de France in 1983 and 1984, as well as the Giro d'Italia in 1989. He held the title of FICP World No. 1 in 1989. Fignon came ...

(1960–2010), French cyclist * Laurent Koscielny, French association football player * Laurent Manuel, American association football (soccer) player * Laurent Robinson, American football wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys *

Lucien Laurent Lucien Laurent (10 December 1907 – 11 April 2005) was a French association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. Playing for France national football team, France, at the 1930 FIFA World Cup, 1930 World C ...

, French association football player * Roger Laurent, Belgian racing driver * Laurent Pimond, French association football player * Laurent Seigne, French former rugby union coach

Others

* Laurent, Prince of Belgium, 12th in line to the Belgian throne * Joseph Laurent (1839–1917), Abenaki chief and linguist * Laurent Bourgeois, choreographer and rapper from French dance duo Les Twins * Laurent Brancowitz, guitarist for French band Phoenix * Laurent Laplante (1934–2017), Canadian journalist, essayist and detective writer * Laurent Nkunda, Congolese rebel general * Harry Laurent (1895–1987), New Zealand recipient of the Victoria Cross * Mathilde Laurent, French perfumer *

Mélanie Laurent Mélanie Laurent (; born 21 February 1983) is a French actress and filmmaker. She has received two César Awards and a Lumière Award. Internationally, Laurent is known for her roles in ''Inglourious Basterds'' (2009), '' Now You See Me'' (2013 ...

, French actress *

Yves Saint Laurent (designer) Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent (1 August 1936 – 1 June 2008), better known as Yves Saint Laurent (, , , ) or YSL, was a French fashion designer who, in 1962, founded his eponymous fashion label. He is regarded as being among the for ...

, French fashion designer

Fictional characters

* Dick Laurent, a fictional character in ''Lost Highway'' by David Lynch * Laurent (''Twilight''), one of the nomadic vampires in Stephenie Meyer's ''Twilight'' series * Laurent (''Captive Prince''), prince of Vere in C. S. Pacat's ''Captive Prince'' series

References

{{given name, type=both French masculine given names Masculine given names French-language surnames