(French) name, of Germanic (Frankish) origin, from hlōd ‘fame’ +
wīg ‘war’. It was very common in French royal and noble
families. Louis I (778–840) was the son of Charlemagne, who
ruled as both King of France and Holy Roman Emperor. Altogether,
the name was borne by sixteen kings of France up to the French
Revolution, in which Louis XVI perished. Louis XIV, ‘the Sun
King’ (1638–1715), reigned for seventy-two years (1643–1715),
presiding in the middle part of his reign over a period of
unparalleled French power and prosperity. In modern times Louis
is also found in the English-speaking world (usually pronounced
‘loo-ee’). In Britain the Anglicized form Lewis is rather more
common, whereas in America the reverse is true.