The Leopard (Panthera pardus) is one of the four 'big cats' of the genus Panthera. Originally, it was thought that a leopard was a hybrid between a lion and a panther, and the leopard's common name derives from this belief; leo is the Greek and Latin word for lion (Greek leon) and pard is an old term meaning panther. Leopards have the largest distribution of any wild cat, occurring widely in Africa as well as eastern and southern Asia.