A brief history of Lac Léman
In French "Le Lac Léman” means the whole lake, referring to the lake in its entirety rather than its position within the city of Geneva. "Le Lac de Genève" technically refers only to the part of the lake that twists round towards Geneva, so Lac Léman - or Lake Leman - is a more common local term than Lake Geneva, which became popular following the rise of Geneva.