Bismillah Al Rahman Al Rahim' used by Muslims is an important sentence, which means "In the name of Allah, who is most kind ...

The new pope’s name, as well as his baptismal names, will be translated into Latin in the announcement but his former surname will remain in his native language. For example, when Pope Francis ...

By Elisabetta Povoledo Reporting from Vatican City What’s in a name? A lot, it turns out. Matteo Bruni, a Vatican spokesman, told reporters on Thursday that Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost’s ...

ROME, Italy — The first clue of the next pope's direction will be the name the winner chooses. The announcement “Habemus Papam” — “We have a pope" — from the balcony of St. Peter’s ...

Prevost, a 69-year-old member of the Augustinian religious order who spent his career ministering in Peru, took the name Leo XIV. In his first words as Pope Francis’ successor, uttered from the ...

Leo is now tied for the fourth most common name chosen by popes, along with Clement. Only John, Gregory and Benedict have proven more popular. But we haven’t had a Pope Leo in more than a century.

Changing his name is one of the first actions the new pope takes as head of the Roman Catholic Church and can play a hugely symbolic role in setting the tone for his pontificate. It is a precedent ...

Like the other ceremonies and traditions that accompany the advent of a new pope, his newly chosen name will be imbued with centuries of Catholic history and dissected for its many layers of meaning.