80070039

open access

Version of Record

コユウ メイシ ニ ユライ スル カガク ゲンソ ノ エイゴメイ ニツイテ - ゾクホウ

On the 49 English Names of Chemical Elements Derived from Proper Nouns

Japanese (日本語)

神戸大学医療技術短期大学部紀要

2

165-178

神戸大学医療技術短期大学部

1986

2007-11-21

By the proposition of a Swedish chemist Jones Jakob Berzelius (1779-1848) in 1814, every chemical element came to have its own Latin name, from which elemental signs were derived as acronyms. These Latin names are useful as a means of universal scientific appellations as in the case of the names of plants and animals. But in the case of the non-Latin names, such different names as hydrogen (English), Wasserstoff (German) , hydrogene (French) , 'suiso' (Japanese) etc., are used in each country. As of 1985, there are 103 chemical elements recognized by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) More than half of them have names originating in the description of their forms, colors, odors, and properties. The rest are derived from proper nouns, i.e., personal names, names of heavenly bodies, and place names directly or indirectly. Personal names are classified into two groups; names based on actual persons and mythical figures. Names of heavenly bodies include names of satellites and planets, many of which are indirectly intermingled with mythical figures in their origins. Place names are divided into two groups for convenience' sake; names of districts or countries, and those of towns or villages, etc.. This paper deals with the 49 English names of elements derived from proper nouns with special reference to their origins, meanings, and historical backgrounds.

紀要論文