Robert Prevost Is the First Pontiff to Rename Himself Pope Leo in Over 100 Years
Pope Leo XIV made history as the first U.S. pope.
Published May 8 2025, 2:30 p.m. ET
Several weeks after the death of Pope Francis, the 266th pope of the Catholic Church, 133 red-robed cardinals selected the church's 267th pope. For the first time in history, the papal conclave selected its first American pope: Cardinal Robert Prevost.
On Thursday, May 8, 2025, stepped onto the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica as the new leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics following a two-day selection process. Here's the rundown on the new pope and his new name.
Robert Prevost changed his name to Pope Leo XIV upon starting his role as pope.
Prevost's global experience and reputation as an "exceptional leader" in his field earned him the honorable position as the new Pontiff. Upon being selected, he changed his name to fit his determination to follow Pope Francis's reforms.
Prevost selected the papal name Pope Leo XIV.
Pope Leo XIV didn't disclose the reason behind his papal name right away.
However, in an interview with The Independent, Catholic priest and blogger Ed Tomlinson suggested he possibly selected the name to show the church he would fearlessly lead them in the right direction, among the collective mourning of Pope Francis.
"The papal name Leo unsurprisingly shows a Pope who is going to be strong during a time of crisis, historically," Tomlinson explained.
According to The Independent, the name hadn't been used in more than 100 years when Pope Leo XIII led the Church from 1878 to 1903.
Who is the new pope, Robert Prevost?
Prevost hails from Chicago, Ill. Although he is the first pope with U.S. citizenship, his background working overseas made him a top pick for the pope position. According to CNN, Prevost is "a leader with global experience," spending most of his career as a missionary in South America. He also spearheaded a powerful Vatican office for bishop appointments. Additionally, he spent time working in Trujillo, Peru, and was later appointed bishop of Chiclayo, another Peruvian city, where he served from 2014 to 2023.
“He’s somebody that, even though he’s from the West, would be very attentive to the needs of a global church,” Elise Allen, CNN’s Vatican analyst explained. "You’re talking about somebody who spent over half of his ecclesial career abroad as a missionary in Peru.”