1. leland, john English antiquary, born in London; travelled much on the Continent and amassed vast learning; held a commission from Henry VIII. to examine the antiquities and libraries of England, in fulfilment of which charge he spent six years in collecting a world of things that would otherwise have been lost, and the rest of his life, till he went insane, in arranging them (1506-1552).
2. leland, john a Nonconformist minister, born in Wigan; wrote chiefly in defence of Christianity against the attacks of the Deists (1691-1766).
Definitions of leland, john
