Pope Leo XIV (born Robert Francis Prevost, September 14, 1955) is the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City. He is the first pope to have been born in the United States, the first from North America, the first to hold either U.S. or Peruvian citizenships (or both), the first born after World War II, the first from the Order of Saint Augustine, and the second (after his immediate predecessor Pope Francis) from the Americas.

Prevost was born in Chicago and raised in the nearby suburb of Dolton, Illinois. He became a friar in the Order of Saint Augustine in 1977 and was ordained as a priest in 1982. He earned a Doctor of Canon Law (JCD) degree in 1987 from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome. His service includes extensive missionary work in Peru in the 1980s and 1990s—he worked there as a parish pastor, diocesan official, seminary teacher, and administrator. Elected prior general of the Order of Saint Augustine, he was based in Rome from 2001 to 2013, and traveled extensively as part of this work, including to the order's many provinces and missions around the world. He then returned to Peru as Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023. In 2023, Pope Francis appointed him prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in Rome, and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.

Upon his return to Rome in 2023, Prevost was made a cardinal by Pope Francis. As Cardinal Prevost, he emphasized synodality, missionary dialogue, and engagement with social and technological challenges. He has also addressed issues such as climate change, global migration, church governance, and human rights, and expressed alignment with the reforms of the Second Vatican Council and the direction set for the Church by Francis.

Prevost's election in the 2025 conclave was unexpected by observers; he was a dark horse candidate, with Vatican insiders believing the prospect of a pope from the United States to be unrealistic given its status as a superpower. In honor of Pope Leo XIII, who developed modern Catholic social teaching amid the tumult of the Second Industrial Revolution, Prevost chose the papal name Leo XIV — both to echo Leo XIII's concern for workers and fairness, and as a response to the challenges of a new industrial revolution and artificial intelligence.

Robert Francis Prevost was born on September 14, 1955, at Mercy Hospital in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, on the city's South Side. He is of Spanish, French, Italian, and Louisiana Creole descent. His father, Louis Marius Prevost, was a Chicago native, having grown up in Hyde Park. Louis's father and mother were immigrants from Italy and France, respectively. Louis Prevost was a United States Navy veteran of World War II who commanded an infantry landing craft in the Normandy landings and later participated in Operation Dragoon in southern France. An educator, he later became superintendent of Brookwood School District 167 in Glenwood, Illinois. Leo XIV's mother, Mildred Agnes Prevost (née Martínez), was also born in Chicago, into a mixed-race Black Creole family from Louisiana. She was also an educator, and a librarian, including at Mendel Catholic High School.

Known as "Rob" to his family and "Bob" to friends as an adult, Prevost was raised in Dolton, Illinois, a suburb bordering the far South Side; his childhood home was purchased by the Village of Dolton after he became pope. He grew up in the parish of St. Mary of the Assumption in nearby Riverdale. His parents were practicing Catholics who were very involved in the parish: Louis was a catechist, a teacher of the faith; while Mildred was an active member of the Rosary and Altar Society, sang in the church choir, provided services for the church and went to daily Mass. According to Leo, what influenced him spiritually was his parents' faith, prayer life and Marian devotions ("My parents prayed the rosary together their whole lives everyday") and their mutual love. His mother would call him and his brothers to go to Mass before school at 6:30 a.m., and told them that Jesus "is your best friend," and Mass "a way to find that friend." Leo went to the parish Catholic school, sang in the choir, and served as an altar boy. Prevost has two older brothers, Louis Martín, and John Joseph. Prevost aspired to the priesthood from a young age, and would play-act the Mass at home with his brothers.

From 1969 to 1973, Prevost attended St. Augustine Seminary High School, a minor seminary near Saugatuck, Michigan; his brother John recalled how, from the end of eighth grade on, and especially after joining the Order of Saint Augustine, until their later adulthood when leave allowed them to reconnect, Prevost was hardly at home or with their family.

At the Augustinian seminary, he earned a letter of commendation for academic excellence, consistently appeared on the honor roll, served as yearbook editor-in-chief, and was secretary of the student council and a member of the National Honor Society. He captained the bowling team and headed the speech and debate team, competing in Congressional Debate. Well-liked and highly intelligent, Prevost had a reputation for helping other students as a tutor. Out of several dozen who entered the school with him, Prevost was one of only 13 students in his class to graduate.