Lia is the Latinate form of Leah and has been the spelling used in some versions of the Bible. In Genesis 29:15, we are introduced to Leah as the daughter of Laban. “Now Laban had two daughters. The name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance. Jacob loved Rachel.†In exchange for Rachel’s hand in marriage, Jacob served Laban for seven years. In the end, Laban tricked Jacob into taking Leah as his first wife, promising Rachel after another seven years of service. When Jacob asked Laban what he had done to him, Laban exclaims: “It is not so done in our country to give the younger before the firstborn.†Although Leah was not the first choice of Jacob, she still bore him several sons and thus began the people of Israel.
