Etymology (Name Origins) of Elements

Element
Actinium
Aluminium
Americium
Antimony

Symbol
Ac
Al
Am
Sb

Argon
Arsenic
Astatine
Barium
Berkelium

Ar
As
At
Ba
Bk

Beryllium

Be

Bismuth

Bi

Bohrium
Boron

Bh
Bo

Bromine
Cadmium
Caesium
Calcium
Californium

Br
Cd
Cs
Ca
Cf

Carbon
Cerium

C
Ce

Chlorine
Chromium
Cobalt
Copper
Curium
Darmstadtiu
m
Dubnium

Cl
Cr
Co
Cu
Cm
Ds

Dysprosium
Einsteinium
Erbium
Europium
Fermium
Fluorine
Francium

Dy
Es
Er
Eu
Fm
F
Fr

Db

Origin
Greek aktinos, meaning ray
Latin alumen, meaning bitter salt
Named for America, where it was first made
Greek anti - monos, meaning not - alone; Latin stibium,
the name of antimony sulfide in ancient times
Greek argos, meaning idle
Greek arsenikon, meaning yellow orpiment, a mineral
Greek astatos, meaning unstable
Greek barys, meaning heavy
Named for the city of Berkeley, CA, where it was first
made
Greek beryllo, meaning beryl; originally glaucinium,
Greek glykos meaning sweet
German Bisemuten, from Wismuth, from Weisse Masse,
meaning white mass
Named for Niels Bohr, Danish atomic physicist
Arabic buraq, meaning borax; a combination of borax
and carbon
Greek bromos, meaning stench
Latin cadmia, meaning mineral calamine
Latin caesius; meaning sky blue
Latin calx, meaning lime
Named for the University and State of California, where
it was first made
Latin carbo, meaning charcoal
Named after the asteroid Ceres, which had been
named after the Roman goddess of agriculture
Greek chloros, meaning greenish-yellow
Greek chroma, meaning colour
German kobald, meaning goblin
Old English coper, from Latin Cypreum aes
Named in honour of Pierre and Marie Curie
Named for Darmstadt, Germany, where it was first
made
Named for the Russian town Dubna, where the JINR is
located
Greek dysprositos, meaning hard to get
Named for Albert Einstein, meaning
Named for Ytterby, Sweden
Named after Europe
Named for nuclear physicist Enrico Fermi
Latin fluere, meaning to flow
Named after France

Gadolinium

Gd

Gallium
Germanium
Gold

Ga
Ge
Au

Hafnium
Hassium

Hf
Hs

Helium
Holmium
Hydrogen
Indium
Iodine
Iridium
Iron
Krypton
Lanthanum
Lawrencium

He
Ho
H
In
I
Ir
Fe
Kr
La
Lr

Lead
Lithium
Lutetium
Magnesium
Manganese
Meitnerium
Mendeleviu
m
Mercury

Pb
Li
Lu
Mg
Mn
Mt
Md

Molybdenu
m
Neodymium
Neon
Neptunium
Nickel

Mo

Niobium
Nitrogen
Nobelium
Osmium
Oxygen
Palladium

Nb
N
No
Os
O
Pd

Phosphorus
Platinum

P
Pt

Hg

Nd
Ne
Np
Ni

Named in honour of John Gadolin, who investigated

gadolinite
Latin Gallia, the name for France
Latin Germania, the name for Germany
Anglo-Saxon gold, from Latin geolo, meaning yellow; Au
from Latin aureum, meaning glow of sunrise
Latin Hafnia, the name for Copenhagen
Named for the German State of Hesse, where it was
first made
Greek helios, meaning the Sun
Latin Holmia , the name for Stockholm
Greek hydro and genes, meaning water-forming
Latin indicum, meaning violet or indigo
Greek iodes, meaning violet
Named for Iris, Greek goddess of the rainbow
Anglo-Saxon iren; Fe, Latin ferrum, word for iron
Greek kryptos, meaning hidden
Greek lanthanein, meaning lie hidden
Named for Ernest O. Lawrence, the inventor of
thecyclotron
Anglo-Saxon lead; Pb, Latin plumbum, name for lead
Greek lithos, meaning stone
Latin Lutetia, Roman name for Paris
Named for Magnesia, a district of Greece
Latin magnes, meaning magnet
Named for Austrian physicist Lise Meitner
Named for Dimitri Mendeleyev, who produced one of
the first periodic tables
Named for the planet Mercury; Hg Latin hydrargyrum,
meaning liquid silver
Greek molybdos, meaning lead
Greek neo didymos, meaning new twin
Greek neos, meaning new
Named for the planet Neptune
German kupfernickel, meaning devil's copper or St.
Nicholas' copper
For Niobe in Greek mythology
Greek nitron and genes, meaning nitre-forming
Named for Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel
Greek osme, meaning smell
Greek oxy and genes, meaning acid-forming
For the asteroid Pallas; for the Greek goddess of
wisdom
Greek phosphoros, meaning bringer of light
Spanish platina, meaning little silver

Plutonium
Polonium
Potassium

Pu
Po
K

Praseodymi
um
Promethium

Pr

Protactiniu
m
Radium
Radon
Rhenium
Rhodium
Roentgeniu
m
Rubidium
Ruthenium
Rutherfordi
um
Samarium

Pa

Scandium
Seaborgium
Selenium
Silicon
Silver

Sc
Sg
Se
Si
Ag

Sodium
Strontium
Sulfur

Na
Sr
S

Tantalum

Ta

Technetium
Tellurium
Terbium
Thallium
Thorium
Thulium
Tin
Titanium
Tungsten

Tc
Te
Tb
Tl
Th
Tm
Sn
Ti
W

Uranium

Pm

Named for the planet Pluto

Named for Poland
From English potash; K from kalium Medieval Latin for
potash
Greek prasios didymos, meaning green twin

Ra
Rn
Re
Rh
Rg

Named for Prometheus, the Greek who stole fire from

the gods
Greek protos, meaning first, as a prefix to the name
actinium
Latin radius, meaning ray
Derived from radium
Latin Rhenus, the name for the Rhine
Greek rhodon, meaning rose-coloured
Named for the scientist Wilhelm Conrad Rentgen

Rb
Ru
Rf

Latin rubidius, meaning deepest red

Derived from Latin name for Russia
Named for New Zealand chemist Ernest Rutherford

Sm

Named for samarskite, the mineral from which it was

first extracted
Latin Scandia, the name for Scandanavia
Named for Glenn T. Seaborg, meaning
Greek Selene, the name for the Moon
Latin silex or silicia, meaning flint
Anglo-Saxon siolfur, the word for silver; Ag, Latin
argentum, the word for silver
English word soda; Na, Latin natrium, meaning soda
Named for the town of Strontian, Scotland
Sanskrit sulvere, or Latin sulfurium, both names for
sulfur
Named for the Greek figure Tantalus, King of Sisyphus,
in Lydia
Greek tekhnetos, meaning artificial
Latin tellus, meaning Earth
Named for Ytterby, Sweden
Greek thallos, meaning green twig
Named for Thor, Scandanavian god of war
Derived from Thule, the ancient name for Scandanavia
Anglo-Saxon tin; Sn, Latin stannum, meaning hard
Named for the Titans of Greek mythology
Swedish tung sten, meaning heavy stone; W from
wolfram, the old name of the tungstenn mineral
wolframite
Named for the planet Uranus

Vanadium

Xenon
Ytterbium
Yttrium
Zinc
Zirconium

Xe
Yb
Y
Zn
Zr

Named for Vanadis, the Scandanavian goddess of

beauty
Greek zenos, meaning stranger
Named for Ytterby, Sweden
Named for Ytterby, Sweden
German zink
Arabian zargun, meaning gold-coloured

Unnamed Elements
Element
Ununbium
Ununtriium
Ununquadium
Ununpentium
Ununhexium
Ununseptium
Ununoctium
Ununennium

Symb
ol
Uub
Uut
Uuq
Uup
Uuh
Uus
Uuo
Uue

Origin
Unnamed
Unnamed
Unnamed
Unnamed
Unnamed
Unnamed
Unnamed
Unnamed