Elements by Name Origin Flashcards
1
Q
From the name for a dwarf planet in the asteroid belt, considered a planet at the time
A
Cerium
2
Q
From the Greek for ‘strange’
A
Xenon
3
Q
From the name of a Roman god of commerce and communication, known for his speed
A
Mercury
4
Q
From the name of the Scandinavian god of thunder
A
Thorium
5
Q
From the Latin for ‘coal’
A
Carbon
6
Q
From the Latin name for Germany
A
Germanium
7
Q
From the Latin for ‘lime’
A
Calcium
8
Q
From the name of the element of which it is the immediate decay product
A
Radon (from ‘radium’)
9
Q
Of unknown origin but possibility from the Greek for ‘against’ and ‘alone’
A
Antimony
10
Q
From the name of a village in Scotland
A
Strontium
11
Q
From the Swedish for ‘heavy stone’
A
Tungsten
12
Q
From the Greek for ‘idle’
A
Argon
13
Q
From the Latin for ‘the ground, earth’
A
Tellurium
14
Q
From the Latin for ‘sky-blue’
A
Caesium
15
Q
From the Latin name for the home country of Marie Curie
A
Polonium
16
Q
From the Latin name for the Danish city where it was discovered
A
Hafnium (from ‘Copenhagen’)
17
Q
From the name of the physicist from New Zealand who is considered the founder of nuclear physics
A
Rutherfordium
18
Q
From the proto-Germanic name for the material, ultimately of unknown origin but possibly from the Akkadian for ‘refined’
A
Silver
19
Q
From the name of the laboratory where the element was synthesised, ultimately named after a Russian physicist
A
Flerovium
20
Q
From the name of the dwarf planet that was considered the ninth planet in the Solar System at the time
A
Plutonium
21
Q
From the name for a mineral whose varieties include emerald and aquamarine
A
Beryllium (named for beryl)
22
Q
From the name of a Polish astronomer
A
Copernicium
23
Q
From the Latin for ‘brimstone’
A
Sulfur
24
Q
From the medieval Latin for Eastern Slavic lands
A
Ruthenium
25
From the name of an asteroid, considered a planet at the time
Palladium (from the asteroid Pallas)
26
From the Greek for 'first, before' + the name of the element produced by its the radioactive decay
Protactinium
27
From Proto-Germanic, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European for 'shine'
Gold
28
From the name of an Austrian physicist, one of those who first discovered nuclear fission
Meitnerium
29
From the name for the Californian laboratory which collaborated on its synthesis, ultimately named for the town
Livermorium
30
From the Latin for the mined and manufactured (from plant ashes) salts that contained the element
Potassium
31
From the name of a Danish physicist
Bohrium
32
From the French but ultimately from the Old Iranian for 'golden'
Arsenic
33
From the name of a district in Thessaly in Greece
Magnesium and Manganese
34
From the name of the city in Germany where the element was first synthesised
Darmstadtium
35
From the name of the Russian chemist and inventor who proposed the periodic table
Mendelevium
36
From the name of a Swedish chemist and engineer
Nobelium
37
From the name of an Italian physicist
Fermium
38
From the Greek for 'green twin'
Praseodymium
39
From the Greek for 'acid-forming'
Oxygen
40
From the Greek for 'light-bearing'
Phosphorus
41
From the name for the sons of the Earth goddess of Greek mythology
Titanium
42
From the Greek for 'to lie hidden'
Lanthanum
43
From the Proto-Germanic name for the material, ultimately of unknown origin
Lead
44
From the Latin name for a major European river
Rhenium (from 'Rhine')
45
From the Greek for 'heavy'
Barium
46
From the Greek for 'ray'
Actinium
47
From the name of the German physicist who discovered radioactivity
Roentgenium
48
From the Greek for 'water-forming'
Hydrogen
49
From the Greek for 'piece of lead'
Molybdenum
50
From the Arabic for 'headache' as one of its compounds was once widely used as a treatment for headaches
Sodium (sodium carbonate was used to treat headaches)
51
From the Greek for 'moon'
Selenium
52
From the name of a mineral named after a Russian mine official
Samarium (after samarskite, after Colonel Vasili Samarsky-Bykhovets)
53
From the Latin for 'ray'
Radium
54
From the Greek for 'artificial'
Technetium
55
From the name of an American chemist involved in the discovery of 10 transuranium elements
Seaborgium
56
From an Old Norse name for the Scandinavian goddess Freyja
Vanadium
57
From the name of an American physicist and inventor of the cyclotron
Lawrencium
58
From the Greek for 'saltpeter-forming'
Nitrogen
59
From the name of a village in Sweden
Yttrium, Terbium, Erbium, and Ytterbium
60
From the name of the German physicist known for, among other things, his mass-energy equivalence equation
Einsteinium
61
From the name of the continent where the element was first synthesised
Americium
62
Most likely from the German for 'prong' or 'tooth'
Zinc
63
From the Greek for 'green shoot or twig'
Thallium
64
From the name for the Russia city where the element was first synthesised
Moscovium
65
From the Latin name for discoverer Per Teodor Cleve's home town
Holmium (from 'Stockholm')
66
From the Greek for 'new twin'
Neodymium
67
From the name of the founder and first king of Thebes
Cadmium
68
From the Greek for 'stench'
Bromine
69
From the English, ultimately from the Greek for 'Cyprus'
Copper
70
From the name of the city in California where the element was first synthesized
Berkelium
71
From the name of a southern U.S. state
Tennessine
72
From the Latin name for France
Gallium
73
From the name of the eighth planet in the Solar System
Neptunium
74
From the Greek for 'hidden'
Krypton
75
From the name of the daughter of king Tantalus from Greek mythology
Niobium
76
From the Greek for 'violet'
Iodine
77
From the Greek for 'greenish yellow'
Chlorine
78
From the name of a Russian physicist who is one of the world's leading researcher on superheavy elements
Oganesson (from 'Oganessian')
79
From the name of the U.S. state where the element was first synthesised
Californium
80
From the Japanese name for Japan (where the element was first synthesised)
Nihonium
81
From the name of a continent
Europium
82
From the Greek for 'rose-coloured'
Rhodium
83
From an early name used for the Scandinavian Peninsula by the first cartographers
Scandium
84
From the Greek for 'stone'
Lithium
85
From the Greek for 'sun'
Helium
86
From the name of the Titan of Greek mythology who stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity
Promethium
87
From the name for the Greek goddess of the rainbow
Iridium
88
From the German for 'goblin'
Cobalt
89
From the Greek for 'smell'
Osmium
90
From the name for a mischievous sprite of German miner mythology
Nickel
91
From the Greek for 'new'
Neon
92
From the name of the town in Russia where the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research is located
Dubnium (from 'Dubna')
93
From the name of a Greek mythological king famous for his eternal punishment in Tartarus
Tantalum
94
From the Greek for 'colour'
Chromium
95
From the proto-Germanic name for the material, not found in Indo-European
Tin
96
From the Latin name for a state in Germany
Hassium (from 'Hesse')
97
From the name of a silicate mineral that is sometimes used as a substitute for diamond
Zirconium
98
From the name of the seventh planet in the Solar System
Uranium
99
From the ancient name for an unclear northern location
Thulium (from 'Thule')
100
From the name of a family of French physicists and chemists
Curium
101
From the Latin for 'deep red'
Rubidium
102
From the Latin for 'to flow'
Fluorine
103
From the name for the European country where it was discovered
Francium
104
From the Greek for 'hard to get'
Dysprosium
105
From the Latin for 'indigo' (colour found in its spectrum)
Indium
106
From the Latin for 'flint'
Silicon
107
From the Latin name for Paris
Lutetium
108
From the Greek for 'unstable'
Astatine
109
From the Spanish for 'little silver'
Platinum
110
From the name of a mineral named after a Finnish chemist, physicist and mineralogist
Gadolinium (after gadolinite, after Johan Gadolin)
111
From the name for a soft white, soluble mineral first discovered in dry lake beds in Tibet and imported via the Silk Road
Boron (named for borax)
112
From the Proto-Germanic name for the material, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European for 'strong'
Iron
113
From the German for 'white mass'
Bismuth
114
From the Latin for 'bitter salt'
Aluminum
