Aslan is the fictional lion who rules Narnia in C.S. Lewis’s books.
Aslan appears throughout The Chronicles of Narnia, where he is the creator, rightful king, and central spiritual figure of the world of Narnia. His name is derived from the Turkish word for “lion,” and the character is presented as powerful, wise, compassionate, and dangerous to evil.
Aslan first appears in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, published in 1950. He guides the children who enter Narnia, confronts the White Witch, and becomes central to the book’s account of sacrifice and restoration.
Aslan is often interpreted as a Christ figure, but Lewis did not present the character as merely a simple allegorical code. Lewis described the Narnia stories as an imaginative retelling of Christian ideas in another world, which is why Aslan’s role combines symbolism with an independent fictional identity.