Levant (wind)

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The winds of the Mediterranean
Tramontane Gregale Levante Sirocco Ostro Libeccio Ponente Mistral

The levant (Catalan: Llevant, Italian: Levante, Maltese: Lvant, Greek: Λεβάντες, Spanish: Levante) is an easterly wind that blows in the western Mediterranean Sea and southern France, an example of mountain-gap wind. In Roussillon it is called "llevant" and in Corsica "levante". In the western Mediterranean, particularly when the wind blows through the Strait of Gibraltar, it is called the Viento de Levante or the Levanter. It is also known as the Solano.

When blowing moderately or strongly, the levant causes heavy swells on the Mediterranean. Usually gentle and damp, the levant frequently brings clouds and rain. When it brings good weather, it is known as the "levant blanc",^[1] or "levante calma" in Gibraltar.

The origin of the name is the same as that of the name Levant for the region of the eastern Mediterranean: it is the Latin word "levante", the participle of levare "to raise" – as in sol levante "rising sun". It thus referred to the eastern direction of the rising sun.