- Dates
- 23 July to 22 August
- Symbol
- ♌ the Lion
- Element
- Fire
- Modality
- Fixed
- Ruler
- Sun
What the Leo sign means
Leo, the Lion, is the fifth sign of the zodiac and the archetype of the sovereign: fire by element, fixed by mode, and ruled by Sun. In astrology, someone is "a Leo" when the Sun was in Leo at their birth, roughly 23 July to 22 August. Those cusp dates shift by a day some years, so if you were born near the edge, only your actual chart settles it.
The Leo temperament
Fire signs run on warmth, momentum, and the appetite to act. As a fixed sign, it sustains: it holds its ground and sees things through. Put together, Leo tends towards warmth that wants to be seen, generous when it is genuinely itself, and like every sign it holds both a gift and its shadow. Vela reads none of this as a verdict on who you are, only as a lens for noticing.
If Leo is your Sun sign, where do you recognise the sovereign in yourself, and where is it a costume you have outgrown?
Read Leo in depth
Your sign is one of three placements that matter most. Read Leo as a Sun sign, your Leo Moon, and your Leo rising, see the personal planets in Leo (Venus, Mars), read today's Leo horoscope, or explore Leo compatibility.
Frequently asked
What are the Leo dates?
The Sun is in Leo from about 23 July to 22 August each year. The cusp dates move by a day some years, so if you were born near the edge, casting your chart is the only way to be sure.
What element and ruler is Leo?
Leo is fire by element and fixed by mode, ruled by Sun.
Is astrology a prediction?
Not in Vela's hands. Your sign is a lens for reflection, a way of noticing patterns in yourself, never a forecast of what you must do or become.