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Origen de los nombres de los elementos

¿De dónde viene el nombre de cada elemento? Algunos honran a planetas, figuras mitológicas o científicos, otros al país o la ciudad de su descubrimiento. Toca una casilla o filtra por fuente del nombre e idioma de origen para recorrer dos siglos de convenciones de denominación a lo largo de la tabla periódica.

Cada nombre de elemento químico tiene una historia. Los elementos más antiguos ya eran conocidos por civilizaciones antiguas y sus nombres se remontan a las propiedades físicas de los metales o a los lugares donde se extraían. Desde el Renacimiento hasta el siglo XIX, los descubridores recurrieron a las raíces griegas y latinas para acuñar nombres de aspecto científico. Los elementos sintetizados modernos suelen honrar a científicos, laboratorios o lugares de descubrimiento. La tabla siguiente colorea cada elemento según su origen, con un pequeño cuadrado en la esquina superior derecha de cada celda que indica el idioma de la palabra original.

De estos 118 elementos, 29 reciben su nombre de lugares, 49 de una propiedad del elemento, 15 de una persona, 9 de la mitología, 9 de un cuerpo astronómico y 7 de un mineral. Los idiomas de origen más comunes son Greek (40), Latin (31), English (23).

Fuente del nombre

Mineral Astronomical body Mythology Person Place Properties

Idioma de origen

Greek Latin Russian English German Swedish Japanese Anglo-Saxon Spanish Norse Arabic
Cuadrícula Tabla
No. Symbol Elemento Fuente del nombre Original word Meaning Language Nombrado por Descripción
1 H Hidrógeno Properties hydor + genes Water-forming Greek Antoine Lavoisier The name is derived from the Greek hyrdo- (ὑδρο) meaning "water" and -genes (γενής) meaning "former".
2 He Helio Astronomical body helios Sun Greek Edward Frankland, Norman Lockyer The name is derived from the Greek word for sun, helios. Helios is also the name of the Greek god of the Sun.
3 Li Litio Properties lithos Stone Greek The name is derived from the Greek word 'lithos' meaning, 'stone.'
4 Be Berilio Mineral beryllos Beryl Greek The name is derived from the beryllos, the Greek name for the mineral beryl, the element was originally known as glucinium - from Greek glykys, meaning 'sweet' - to reflect its characteristic taste.
5 B Boro Mineral buraq / borax Borax mineral Arabic The name is derived from the Arabic word 'buraq', a term signifying the element.
6 C Carbono Properties carbo Charcoal Latin The name probably is derived from the Latin carbo, meaning variously “coal”, “charcoal”, “ember”, and its word origin can be traced to ancient times.
7 N Nitrógeno Properties nitron + genes Nitre-forming Greek Jean-Antoine Chaptal The name is derived from the Latin nitrum and the Greek nitron for "native soda" and genes for "forming".
8 O Oxígeno Properties oxys + genes Acid-forming Greek Antoine Lavoisier The name is derived from the Greek words oxy and genes, which together mean "acid forming."
9 F Flúor Properties fluere To flow Latin Humphry Davy, André-Marie Ampère The name is derived from the mineral fluorite which comes from the Latin word fluere meaning "to flow".
10 Ne Neón Properties neos New Greek The name is derived from the Greek word, νέον, neuter singular form of νέος (neos), meaning 'new'.
11 Na Sodio Properties soda Soda English The name is derived from the English word soda and Medieval Latin word sodanum for "headache remedy".
12 Mg Magnesio Place Magnesia Magnesia district (Greece) Greek Humphry Davy The name is derived from the Greek word Magnesia, a district of Eastern Thessaly in Greece where the mineral magnesia alba was first found.
13 Al Aluminio Properties alumen Bitter salt Latin Humphry Davy The name is derived from the ancient Latin name for alum, which was alumen, meaning bitter salt.
14 Si Silicio Mineral silex Flint Latin Thomas Thomson The name is derived from the Latin word silex or silicis, meaning flint or hard stone.
15 P Fósforo Properties phosphoros Bringer of light Greek The name is derived from the Greek word phosphoros, meaning bringer of light because it has the property of glowing in the dark. Phosphorus was the ancient name for the planet Venus.
16 S Azufre Properties sulpur Brimstone Latin The name is derived either from Arabic word ‘sufra’ meaning yellow (which is the color of the naturally occurring form of the element) or from the Sanskrit word sulvere or the Latin word sulfurium, which meaning sulfur or brimstone.
17 Cl Cloro Properties chloros Greenish-yellow Greek Sir Humphry Davy The name is derived from the Greek word chloros, meaning pale green or yellow-green.
18 Ar Argón Properties argos Idle Greek The name is derived from the Greek word argos (ἀργόν), meaning lazy or idle, as a reference to the fact that the element undergoes almost no chemical reactions.
19 K Potasio Properties potash Potash English The name is derived from the English word potash (pot ashes) from which potassium was first isolated.
20 Ca Calcio Mineral calx Lime Latin The name is derived from the Latin word 'calx' meaning lime, which was obtained from heating limestone.
21 Sc Escandio Place Scandia Scandinavia (Sweden) Latin The name derives from the Latin word 'Scandia', meaning Scandinavia, because the element occurs in rare minerals found there.
22 Ti Titanio Mythology Titanes Titans Greek Martin Heinrich Klaproth The name comes from Greek word Titans, the mythological "first sons of the Earth".
23 V Vanadio Mythology Vanadis Vanadis (Freyja) Norse Nils Gabriel Sefström The name originated from 'Vanadis', the old Norse name for the Scandinavian goddess of of love and beauty (Freyja), because of the beautiful multicolored compounds formed by the metal.
24 Cr Cromo Properties chroma Colour Greek The name is derived from the Greek word 'chroma', meaning color because it forms a variety of colorful compounds.
25 Mn Manganeso Properties magnes Magnet Latin The name either derives from the Latin word 'magnes', meaning magnet, or from ‘magnesia nigra’ indicating the black magnesium oxide in Latin.
26 Fe Hierro Properties iren Iren Anglo-Saxon The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon word 'iren'. The element has been known from prehistoric times.
27 Co Cobalto Mythology kobold Goblin German The name is derived from the German word 'kobald', meaning goblin or evil spirit. It was named by miners in 16th century Saxony who thought they had found deposits of silver but had actually found cobalt arsenide.
28 Ni Níquel Mythology kupfernickel Devil's copper German The name is derived from a mischievous sprite of German miner mythology, Nickel (similar to Old Nick), who personified the fact that copper-nickel ores resisted refinement into copper. It also from the German word for the mineral niccolite, kupfernickel, which means "Old Nick's copper."
29 Cu Cobre Place cuprum From Cyprus (Cyprus) Latin The name is derived from the Old English name 'coper' in turn derived from the Latin ‘Cyprium aes’, meaning ‘Cyprus metal’, the island where the Romans first obtained copper.
30 Zn Zinc Properties zink Zink German Paracelsus The name is derived from the German word 'zinc', a word of unknown origin.
31 Ga Galio Place Gallia France / Gaul (France) Latin The name is derived from the Latin name Gallia, the old name of France, in honor of its discoverer's home country.
32 Ge Germanio Place Germania Germany (Germany) Latin The name is derived from the Latin for Germany, 'Germania', in honor of its discoverer's home country.
33 As Arsénico Mineral arsenikon Orpiment Greek The name is thought to come from the Greek word 'arsenikon' meaning yellow orpiment or from the Greek word 'arsenikos' meaning strong, brave or male. Word was adopted in Latin as arsenicum, which in French became arsenic, from which the English word arsenic is taken.
34 Se Selenio Astronomical body Selene Moon Greek The name is derived from the Greek word 'selene', who was the Greek goddess and the personification of the Moon because the element is chemically found with tellurium (Tellus was the Roman goddess of the Earth).
35 Br Bromo Properties bromos Stench Greek The name comes from the Ancient Greek 'bromos' (βρῶμος) meaning stench, referring to its sharp and pungent smell.
36 Kr Kriptón Properties kryptos Hidden Greek The name is derived from the Greek word 'kryptos', meaning concealed or 'the hidden one'.
37 Rb Rubidio Properties rubidus Dark red Latin The name is derived from the Latin word 'rubidius', meaning deep red because of the two "deep red lines" in its spectra.
38 Sr Estroncio Place Strontian Strontian village (United Kingdom) English Humphry Davy The name is derived from Strontian, a small town in Scotland where the metal was first discovered in 1790.
39 Y Itrio Place Ytterby Ytterby (Sweden) Swedish The name derived from the Swedish village of Ytterby near Vaxholm where the mineral gadolinite was found.
40 Zr Circonio Properties zargun Gold-like Arabic The name is derived from the Arabic word 'zargun', meaning gold coloured.
41 Nb Niobio Mythology Niobe Niobe Greek The name is derived from the Greek goddess of tears, Niobe, who was the daughter of king Tantalus, due to the element's similarities to tantalum.
42 Mo Molibdeno Properties molybdos Lead Greek Peter Jacob Hjelm The name comes from Ancient Greek word molybdos (Μόλυβδος) meaning lead-like, as its ores were confused with lead ores.
43 Tc Tecnecio Properties technetos Artificial Greek The name is derived from the Greek word 'tekhnetos' meaning artificial, because it was the first manmade element synthesized.
44 Ru Rutenio Place Ruthenia Russia (Russia) Latin The name is derived from 'Ruthenia', the Latin name for Russia, as the platinum ores were originally from the Ural Mountains in Russia.
45 Rh Rodio Properties rhodon Rose-coloured Greek The name is derived from the Greek word 'rhodon', meaning rose coloured, named for the rose-red color of dilute solutions of its salts.
46 Pd Paladio Astronomical body Pallas Pallas (asteroid) Greek The name comes from the second largest asteroid in the solar system Pallas. The asteroid itself was named after the Greek goddess of wisdom Pallas Athena.
47 Ag Plata Properties seolfor Seolfor Anglo-Saxon The name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word 'seolfor'. The element has been known since prehistoric times.
48 Cd Cadmio Mineral cadmia Calamine Latin Friedrich Stromeyer The name is derived from the Latin word 'cadmia', the ancient name for the zinc mineral calamine, in which cadmium was first discovered.
49 In Indio Properties indicum Indigo Latin The name is derived from the Latin word 'indicum', meaning indigo, after the brilliant indigo-blue spectral line that revealed its presence.
50 Sn Estaño Properties tin Tin Anglo-Saxon The name comes from the Anglo-Saxon word 'tin' or Cornish 'sten'. The element has been worked since the Bronze Age and the Latin name stannum gives it its symbol Sn.
51 Sb Antimonio Properties anti + monos Not alone Greek The name comes from the Greek 'anti + monos', meaning 'not alone', referring to the fact that antimony is rarely found in its native, uncombined form.
52 Te Telurio Astronomical body tellus Earth Latin Martin Heinrich Klaproth The name is derived from the Latin word 'tellus', meaning Earth, chosen to mirror selenium (named after the Moon) which is chemically similar.
53 I Yodo Properties iodes Violet Greek Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac The name comes from the Greek word 'iodes', meaning violet, after the colour of its vapour when heated.
54 Xe Xenón Properties xenos Stranger Greek William Ramsay The name comes from the Greek 'xenos', meaning stranger or foreigner, because it was found as an unfamiliar trace in liquefied air.
55 Cs Cesio Properties caesius Sky blue Latin The name is derived from the Latin 'caesius', meaning sky-blue, after the two bright blue spectral lines that revealed the new element.
56 Ba Bario Properties barys Heavy Greek Humphry Davy The name comes from the Greek word 'barys', meaning heavy, because of the high density of barium-rich minerals such as baryta.
57 La Lantano Properties lanthanein Lie hidden Greek Carl Gustaf Mosander The name comes from the Greek 'lanthanein', meaning to lie hidden, because the element was discovered hidden inside what was thought to be pure cerium oxide.
58 Ce Cerio Astronomical body Ceres Ceres (dwarf planet) Latin Jöns Jacob Berzelius The name is derived from the dwarf planet Ceres, which had been discovered only two years before the element was identified in 1803.
59 Pr Praseodimio Properties prasios + didymos Green twin Greek The name is derived from the Greek 'prasios' (green) and 'didymos' (twin), referring to its green salts and its long-mistaken status as a twin of didymium.
60 Nd Neodimio Properties neos + didymos New twin Greek The name comes from the Greek 'neos' (new) and 'didymos' (twin), reflecting the split of the old element didymium into neodymium and praseodymium.
61 Pm Prometio Mythology Prometheus Prometheus Greek Grace Mary Coryell The name is derived from Prometheus, the Greek Titan who stole fire from the gods, a nod to the fiery birth of the element from nuclear fission.
62 Sm Samario Mineral Samarskit Samarskite German Lecoq de Boisbaudran The name is derived from the mineral samarskite, itself named after the Russian mining engineer Vasili Samarsky-Bykhovets in the 19th century.
63 Eu Europio Place Europe Europe Greek The name is derived from Europe, the continent, chosen as a counterpart to americium which had been named after the Americas.
64 Gd Gadolinio Person Gadolin Johan Gadolin (Finland) Swedish The name honours the Finnish chemist and mineralogist Johan Gadolin, the first to isolate a rare-earth oxide and pioneer of rare-earth chemistry.
65 Tb Terbio Place Ytterby Ytterby (Sweden) Swedish The name is derived from the Swedish village of Ytterby, whose feldspar quarry has lent its name to four elements (terbium, erbium, ytterbium and yttrium).
66 Dy Disprosio Properties dysprositos Hard to obtain Greek Lecoq de Boisbaudran The name is derived from the Greek word 'dysprositos', which means 'hard to get at'.
67 Ho Holmio Place Holmia Holmia (Stockholm) (Sweden) Latin Per Teodor Cleve The name is derived from the Latin word for the city of Stockholm, Holmia.
68 Er Erbio Place Ytterby Ytterby (Sweden) Swedish The name is derived from the Swedish village of Ytterby near Vaxholm, the same source as terbium, ytterbium and yttrium.
69 Tm Tulio Place Thule Thule (northern lands) Greek The name is derived from Thule, the classical Greek and Roman name for the northernmost edge of the known world, often identified with Scandinavia.
70 Yb Iterbio Place Ytterby Ytterby (Sweden) Swedish The name is derived from the Swedish village of Ytterby, the same quarry that gave names to terbium, erbium and yttrium.
71 Lu Lutecio Place Lutetia Paris (Lutetia) (France) Latin Georges Urbain The name is derived from Lutetia, the Latin name for Paris, in honour of the French chemist Georges Urbain who shared in its discovery.
72 Hf Hafnio Place Hafnia Copenhagen (Hafnia) (Denmark) Latin The name is derived from Hafnia, the Latin name for Copenhagen, where Niels Bohr's institute helped clarify the element's place in the periodic table.
73 Ta Tántalo Mythology Tantalos Tantalus Greek The name is derived from Tantalus of Greek mythology, who was tormented by water and fruit just out of reach, a reference to tantalum's resistance to dissolving in acid.
74 W Tungsteno Properties tung sten Heavy stone (Sweden) Swedish Torbern Bergman The name is derived from the Swedish 'tung sten', meaning 'heavy stone', after the dense mineral now known as scheelite. The symbol W comes from the German wolfram.
75 Re Renio Place Rhenus Rhine river (Germany) Latin The name is derived from Rhenus, the Latin name for the river Rhine, in honour of the German homeland of its discoverers.
76 Os Osmio Properties osme Smell Greek Smithson Tennant The name is derived from the Greek 'osme', meaning smell, after the strong odour of osmium tetroxide formed when the metal is exposed to air.
77 Ir Iridio Mythology Iris Iris Greek The name is derived from Iris, the Greek goddess of the rainbow, because iridium's salts display many vivid colours.
78 Pt Platino Properties platina Little silver Spanish The name is derived from the Spanish 'platina', meaning 'little silver', the name used by 16th-century South American miners who considered it a nuisance metal.
79 Au Oro Properties gold Gold Anglo-Saxon The name comes from the Anglo-Saxon 'gold'. The symbol Au is from the Latin aurum, meaning shining dawn.
80 Hg Mercurio Astronomical body Mercurius Mercury (planet) Latin The element is named after the Roman messenger god Mercury and the planet of the same name. The symbol Hg comes from the Latinised Greek hydrargyrum, meaning 'water-silver'.
81 Tl Talio Properties thallos Green twig Greek The name is derived from the Greek 'thallos', meaning a green shoot or twig, after the bright green spectral line that revealed the new element.
82 Pb Plomo Properties lead Lead Anglo-Saxon The name comes from the Anglo-Saxon 'lead'. The symbol Pb is from the Latin plumbum, the ancient name for the metal.
83 Bi Bismuto Properties wismuth White mass German The name comes from the German 'wismuth', possibly meaning 'white mass' or 'white meadow', referring to the appearance of the metal's deposits.
84 Po Polonio Place Polonia Poland (Poland) Latin Pierre Curie, Marie Curie The element is named after Poland, the native country of Marie Curie, who co-discovered it together with Pierre Curie in 1898.
85 At Astato Properties astatos Unstable Greek The name is derived from the Greek 'astatos', meaning unstable, because astatine has no stable isotopes and is the rarest naturally occurring element.
86 Rn Radón Properties radius From radium Latin The name is derived from radium: radon was originally called 'radium emanation' before being recognised as a separate element.
87 Fr Francio Place Francia France (France) Latin The element is named after France, the home country of its discoverer Marguerite Perey, who identified it at the Curie Institute in Paris.
88 Ra Radio Properties radius Ray Latin The name comes from the Latin 'radius', meaning ray, after the intense radioactivity that radium displays.
89 Ac Actinio Properties aktinos Ray Greek André-Louis Debierne The name is derived from the Greek 'aktinos', meaning beam or ray, mirroring radium and reflecting the element's strong radioactivity.
90 Th Torio Mythology Thor Thor Norse The element is named after Thor, the Norse god of thunder, by the Swedish chemist Jons Jakob Berzelius.
91 Pa Protactinio Properties protos + aktinos First ray Greek Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner The name is derived from the Greek 'protos' (first) and aktinos (ray): protactinium decays into actinium and is therefore the 'parent of actinium'.
92 U Uranio Astronomical body Uranus Uranus (planet) Latin The element is named after the planet Uranus, which had been discovered just eight years before uranium itself was identified in 1789.
93 Np Neptunio Astronomical body Neptunus Neptune (planet) Latin The element is named after the planet Neptune, continuing the planetary naming sequence beyond uranium.
94 Pu Plutonio Astronomical body Pluto Pluto (planet) Latin The element is named after the dwarf planet Pluto, following on from uranium and neptunium in the planetary naming sequence.
95 Am Americio Place America America (United States) English The element is named after the Americas, by direct analogy with europium being named after Europe.
96 Cm Curio Person Curie Marie Curie English The element is named in honour of Marie and Pierre Curie, the pioneering researchers of radioactivity.
97 Bk Berkelio Place Berkeley Berkeley (United States) English The element is named after the city of Berkeley, California, home of the laboratory where it was first synthesised in 1949.
98 Cf Californio Place California California (United States) English The element is named after the US state of California and the University of California, where it was synthesised in 1950.
99 Es Einstenio Person Einstein Albert Einstein English The element is named in honour of Albert Einstein, the German-born theoretical physicist who died the year before the discovery was declassified.
100 Fm Fermio Person Fermi Enrico Fermi English The element is named in honour of Enrico Fermi, the Italian-American physicist who built the first nuclear reactor.
101 Md Mendelevio Person Mendeleev Dmitri Mendeleev English The element is named in honour of Dmitri Mendeleev, the Russian chemist who created the periodic table.
102 No Nobelio Person Nobel Alfred Nobel English The element is named in honour of Alfred Nobel, founder of the Nobel Prizes.
103 Lr Lawrencio Person Lawrence Ernest Lawrence English The element is named in honour of Ernest O. Lawrence, inventor of the cyclotron and founder of the Berkeley radiation laboratory.
104 Rf Rutherfordio Person Rutherford Ernest Rutherford English The element is named in honour of Ernest Rutherford, the New Zealand-born father of nuclear physics.
105 Db Dubnio Place Dubna Dubna (Russia) Russian The element is named after Dubna, the Russian town where the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research carried out key transactinide experiments.
106 Sg Seaborgio Person Seaborg Glenn Seaborg English Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory The element is named in honour of Glenn T. Seaborg, the American chemist who led the discovery of many transuranium elements. It was the first element named after a living person.
107 Bh Bohrio Person Bohr Niels Bohr English GSI The element is named in honour of Niels Bohr, the Danish physicist whose model of the atom shaped 20th-century physics.
108 Hs Hasio Place Hassia Hesse (state) (Germany) Latin GSI The name is derived from Hassia, the Latin name for the German state of Hesse, where the GSI laboratory in Darmstadt is located.
109 Mt Meitnerio Person Meitner Lise Meitner English GSI The element is named in honour of Lise Meitner, the Austrian-Swedish physicist who co-discovered nuclear fission with Otto Hahn.
110 Ds Darmstatio Place Darmstadt Darmstadt (Germany) German GSI The element is named after the German city of Darmstadt, home of the GSI laboratory where it was first synthesised.
111 Rg Roentgenio Person Röntgen Wilhelm Röntgen English GSI The element is named in honour of Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen, the German physicist who discovered X-rays in 1895.
112 Cn Copernicio Person Copernicus Nicolaus Copernicus English GSI The element is named in honour of Nicolaus Copernicus, the Renaissance astronomer who placed the Sun at the centre of the solar system.
113 Nh Nihonio Place Nihon Japan (Japan) Japanese RIKEN The element is named after Nihon, one of the Japanese names for Japan. It was the first element to be discovered in East Asia.
114 Fl Flerovio Person Flerov Georgy Flerov English JINR, LLNL The element is named in honour of Georgy Flyorov, founder of the Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions at JINR in Dubna.
115 Mc Moscovio Place Moscow Moscow (Russia) English JINR, LLNL, ORNL, Vanderbilt University The element is named after Moscow Oblast, the Russian region where JINR in Dubna is located.
116 Lv Livermorio Place Livermore Livermore Lab (United States) English JINR, LLNL The element is named in honour of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, a partner in the discovery.
117 Ts Teneso Place Tennessee Tennessee (United States) English JINR, LLNL, ORNL, Vanderbilt University The element is named after the US state of Tennessee, where Oak Ridge and Vanderbilt research groups contributed to the discovery.
118 Og Oganesón Person Oganessian Yuri Oganessian English JINR, LLNL The element is named in honour of Yuri Oganessian, the Armenian-Russian physicist who led much of the recent transactinide research at JINR.

Preguntas frecuentes

¿Qué significa "Origen del nombre"?
El origen del nombre es la categoría en honor a la que se nombra un elemento, como un mineral, un cuerpo astronómico, una figura mitológica, una persona, un lugar o una propiedad del elemento. El helio, por ejemplo, viene del griego helios ("sol"), por lo que su origen es astronómico.
¿Por qué tantos nombres de elementos provienen del griego y del latín?
Durante la mayor parte de la historia de la química, el latín fue el idioma de la ciencia y el griego el de la filosofía natural. Los descubridores de los siglos XVIII y XIX acuñaron rutinariamente nombres a partir de raíces clásicas para que las palabras sonaran científicas y fueran legibles en varios idiomas europeos.
¿Qué es un epónimo?
Un epónimo es un nombre derivado de una persona. El curio honra a Marie y Pierre Curie, el einstenio honra a Albert Einstein y el seaborgio fue el primer elemento que recibió oficialmente el nombre de una persona viva (Glenn T. Seaborg).
¿Quién decide los nombres oficiales de los nuevos elementos?
La Unión Internacional de Química Pura y Aplicada (IUPAC) aprueba todos los nombres y símbolos oficiales de los elementos. El equipo descubridor envía una propuesta, la IUPAC realiza una revisión pública y luego publica el nombre definitivo.
¿Hay elementos nombrados en honor a un país o estado?
Sí, más de una docena. Algunos ejemplos son francio (Francia), germanio (Alemania), americio (las Américas), polonio (Polonia), nihonio (Nihon, un nombre japonés para Japón) y teneso (el estado estadounidense de Tennessee).
¿Cuándo recibe su nombre oficial un elemento recién sintetizado?
Una vez que un grupo de trabajo conjunto IUPAC/IUPAP ha confirmado el descubrimiento (lo que puede llevar años), se invita al equipo descubridor a proponer un nombre. La IUPAC realiza entonces una revisión pública de cinco meses antes de publicar el nombre oficial.