What is Earth named after?

The Earth is not named after a Greek or Roman god, but rather its name comes from the Old English words ‘eor(th)e‘ and ‘ertha‘, which mean ‘ground‘, and the German word ‘erde‘, also meaning ‘earth‘ or ‘ground‘. The Earth’s name is derived from the Indo-European base ‘er‘, which produced the Germanic noun ‘ertho‘, the modern German ‘erde‘, Dutch ‘aarde‘, Danish and Swedish ‘jord‘, and English ‘earth‘.

Earth Naming

History of Earth’s Name

Earth is named after the German and Old English words for ground.

Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

1. What was Earth’s real name? The Earth does not have an official international name, but the standard English name of the planet, including in science, is “Earth“.
2. What was Earth called before the name Earth? The name “Terra” has been widely used in the past, and we still use words like terrestrial and extra-terrestrial to this day.
3. Why is Earth named after a Greek god? Actually, the Earth is not named after a Greek god, but the names Mother Earth and Mother Nature have roots in Greek mythology, with Gaia being the Greek goddess of Earth.
4. Why is planet Earth not named after a god? Most likely, Earth was not named after a Greco-Roman god because it was not recognized as a planet in antiquity.

Mythology and History

5. What planet is named after the god of death? Pluto, now classified as a dwarf planet, was named after the Roman god of death.
6. What planet is named after a god? The Romans named the solar system’s biggest planet, Jupiter, after the king of the Roman gods, while Mars was named after the god of war.
7. Which of the 9 planets is not named after God? Earth is the only planet not named after a Greek or Roman god.
8. What did Greece call Earth? In Greek mythology, the Earth was personified as Gaia, also spelled Gaea, meaning “land” or “earth“.

Science and Exploration

9. What God is Jupiter named after? Jupiter is named after the Roman equivalent of Zeus, the king of the gods.
10. What is Earth called in the Bible? The Bible refers to the Earth as “Adamah“, “Tebel“, and “Tevel“, emphasizing its global nature.
11. Who decided to name Earth? The name of the Earth comes from the Indo-European base ‘er‘, which produced the Germanic noun ‘ertho‘ and the modern English ‘earth‘.

Planetary Relations

12. What was the first time on Earth called? The earliest time of the Earth is called the Hadean, followed by the Archean, which corresponds to the ages of the oldest known rocks on Earth.
13. Who is Earth’s twin? Venus and Earth are sometimes called twins due to their similar size and formation in the same inner part of the solar system.
14. Who is Earth’s brother? Mars is often referred to as Earth’s brother due to their similarities, but also their strange and mysterious differences.

Miscellaneous

15. What planet has rings? Four gas planets in the Solar System have rings: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, with Saturn having the largest ring system.