What does levant mean?
Levant most often appears as the capitalized proper noun the Levant, meaning the eastern Mediterranean region and the lands around it. Its name is connected with the direction of the rising sun and originally referred broadly to the east before becoming a geographical designation. The lower-case word is chiefly archaic or literary. As an adjective, levant can mean rising, light, or boding ill, while the older noun sense denotes an easterly wind. These older uses preserve the word’s association with elevation, sunrise, and the eastern horizon. In contemporary English, Levantine is normally preferred when describing a person, language, culture, or product associated with the Levant. The capitalised and lower-case forms therefore belong to distinct phases of the word’s history: the regional proper noun remains familiar and authoritative, whereas the adjective survives mainly in elevated literary style.
The Levant is the eastern Mediterranean region and the lands bordering it; the lower-case noun formerly also denoted an easterly wind.
"The major ports of the Levant have been centers of commerce for millennia."
The regional name is normally capitalized. The wind sense is obsolete.
Rarely used, levant means rising, light, or boding ill; it can also mean of or relating to the Levant.
"The sailors read the levant signs and kept to their shelter."
Most senses are archaic or literary. Levantine is the standard modern adjective for the regional sense.
The Levant is a proper geographical name and is not normally pluralized.
"The Levant contains a diverse collection of ancient and modern cities."
From the direction of the rising sun to the eastern Mediterranean: levant began as a word for the east.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does levant come from?
The word comes through French levant, the present participle of lever, meaning to raise, from Latin levare, to raise or lift. The same development connected it with the rising sun and, by extension, the east. English adopted the geographical sense for the eastern Mediterranean region, while retaining older senses meaning rising, light, or an easterly wind.
How levant is actually used
The regional name is normally capitalized as the Levant. The lower-case adjective and the noun meaning an easterly wind are literary or obsolete; Levantine is the usual modern adjective for something connected with the region.
Easily confused with levant
A levant may refer to the eastern Mediterranean region or, archaically, an easterly wind, whereas a levanter specifically denotes a strong easterly wind, especially in the western Mediterranean.