Editing Planet (section)

== Mythology and naming ==
{{See also|Names of the days of the week|classical planet}}

=== Classical planets ===
The names for the planets of the [[Solar System]] (other than [[Earth]]) in the [[English language]] are derived from naming practices developed consecutively by the [[Babylonians]], [[Ancient Greece|Greeks]], and [[Roman people|Romans]] of [[Classical antiquity|antiquity]]. The practice of grafting the names of gods onto the planets was almost certainly borrowed from the Babylonians by the ancient Greeks, and thereafter from the Greeks by the Romans. The Babylonians named Venus after the [[Sumer]]ian goddess of love with the [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] name [[Ishtar]]; Mars after their god of war, [[Nergal]]; Mercury after their god of wisdom [[Nabu]];  Jupiter after their chief god, [[Marduk]]; and Saturn after their god of farming, [[Ninurta]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Huxley |first=Margaret |date=2000 |title=The Gates and Guardians in Sennacherib's Addition to the Temple of Assur |journal=Iraq |volume=62 |pages=109–137 |doi=10.2307/4200484 |jstor=4200484 |s2cid=191393468 |issn=0021-0889}}</ref> There are too many concordances between Greek and Babylonian naming conventions for them to have arisen separately.<ref name=practice/> Given the differences in mythology, the correspondence was not perfect. For instance, the Babylonian Nergal was a god of war, and thus the Greeks identified him with Ares. Unlike Ares, Nergal was also a god of pestilence and ruler of the underworld.<ref>{{cite book|last=Wiggermann|first=Frans A. M.|chapter=Nergal A. Philological|title=Reallexikon der Assyriologie|chapter-url=http://publikationen.badw.de/en/rla/index#8358|year=1998|publisher=Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities|access-date=12 July 2022|archive-date=6 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210606083853/http://publikationen.badw.de/en/rla/index#8358|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Koch |first=Ulla Susanne |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8QiwAqGlmAQC |title=Mesopotamian Astrology: An Introduction to Babylonian and Assyrian Celestial Divination |date=1995 |publisher=Museum Tusculanum Press |isbn=978-87-7289-287-0 |pages=128–129 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Cecilia |first=Ludovica |date=6 November 2019 |title=A Late Composition Dedicated to Nergal |url=https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/aofo-2019-0014/html |journal=Altorientalische Forschungen |volume=46 |issue=2 |pages=204–213 |doi=10.1515/aofo-2019-0014 |hdl=1871.1/f23ff882-1539-4906-bc08-049906f8d505 |s2cid=208269607 |issn=2196-6761 |hdl-access=free |access-date=12 July 2022 |archive-date=22 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322014922/https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/aofo-2019-0014/html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In ancient Greece, the two great luminaries, the Sun and the Moon, were called ''[[Helios]]'' and ''[[Selene]]'', two ancient [[Titan (mythology)|Titanic]] deities; the slowest planet, Saturn, was called ''[[Phaenon|Phainon]]'', the shiner; followed by ''[[Phaethon]]'', Jupiter, "bright"; the red planet, Mars was known as ''[[Pyroeis]]'', the "fiery"; the brightest, Venus, was known as ''[[Phosphorus (morning star)|Phosphoros]]'', the light bringer; and the fleeting final planet, Mercury, was called ''[[Stilbon (mythology)|Stilbon]]'', the gleamer. The Greeks assigned each planet to one among their pantheon of gods, the [[Twelve Olympians|Olympians]] and the earlier Titans:<ref name=practice/>
* Helios and Selene were the names of both planets and gods, both of them Titans (later supplanted by Olympians [[Apollo]] and [[Artemis]]);
* Phainon was sacred to [[Cronus]], the Titan who fathered the Olympians, associated with the harvest;
* Phaethon was sacred to [[Zeus]], Cronus's son who deposed him as king;
* Pyroeis was given to [[Ares]], son of Zeus and god of war;
* Phosphoros was ruled by [[Aphrodite]], the goddess of love; and
* Stilbon with its speedy motion, was ruled over by [[Hermes]], messenger of the gods and god of learning and wit.<ref name="practice">
{{cite book
 |first=James |last=Evans
 |year=1998
 |title=The History and Practice of Ancient Astronomy
 |pages=296–297
 |publisher=Oxford University Press
 |isbn=978-0-19-509539-5
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nS51_7qbEWsC&pg=PA17
 |access-date=4 February 2008
}}
</ref>

[[File:Olympians.jpg|thumb|upright|The Greek gods of [[Mount Olympus|Olympus]], after whom the [[Solar System]]'s Roman names of the planets are derived]]

Although modern Greeks still use their ancient names for the planets, other European languages, because of the influence of the [[Roman Empire]] and, later, the [[Catholic Church]], use the Roman (Latin) names rather than the Greek ones. The Romans inherited [[Proto-Indo-European mythology]] as the Greeks did and shared with them a [[Roman mythology|common pantheon]] under different names, but the Romans lacked the rich narrative traditions that Greek poetic culture had given [[Greek mythology|their gods]]. During the later period of the [[Roman Republic]], Roman writers borrowed much of the Greek narratives and applied them to their own pantheon, to the point where they became virtually indistinguishable.<ref>Rengel,&nbsp;Marian;&nbsp;Daly,&nbsp;Kathleen&nbsp;N.&nbsp;(2009).&nbsp;''[https://books.google.com/books?id=c7cNB-JaZA8C&q=%22Hellenization%20refers%22 Greek and Roman Mythology, A to Z] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221229103416/https://www.google.com/books/edition/Greek_and_Roman_Mythology_A_to_Z/c7cNB-JaZA8C?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=%22Hellenization%20refers%22 |date=29 December 2022 }}''.&nbsp;United States:&nbsp;Facts On File, Incorporated. p. 66.</ref> When the Romans studied Greek astronomy, they gave the planets their own gods' names: ''[[Mercury (mythology)|Mercurius]]'' (for Hermes), ''[[Venus (mythology)|Venus]]'' (Aphrodite), ''[[Mars (mythology)|Mars]]'' (Ares), ''[[Jupiter (mythology)|Iuppiter]]'' (Zeus), and ''[[Saturn (mythology)|Saturnus]]'' (Cronus). However, there was not much agreement on which god a particular planet was associated with; according to [[Pliny the Elder]], while Phainon and Phaethon's associations with Saturn and Jupiter respectively were widely agreed upon, Pyroeis was also associated with the demi-god [[Hercules]], Stilbon was also associated with [[Apollo]], god of music, healing, and prophecy; Phosphoros was also associated with prominent goddesses [[Juno (mythology)|Juno]] and [[Isis]].<ref name="DRGA Planetae">[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0063%3Aalphabetic+letter%3DP%3Aentry+group%3D4%3Aentry%3Dplanetae-cn "Planetae"], in ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'', pp. 922, 923.</ref> Some Romans, following a belief possibly originating in [[Mesopotamia]] but developed in [[Hellenistic Egypt]], believed that the seven gods after whom the planets were named took hourly shifts in looking after affairs on Earth. The order of shifts went Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon (from the farthest to the closest planet).<ref name="zerubavel">
{{cite book
 | first=Eviatar |last=Zerubavel
 |year=1989
 |title=The Seven Day Circle: The history and meaning of the week
 |page=14
 |publisher=University of Chicago Press
 |isbn=978-0-226-98165-9
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aGahKeojIUoC&pg=PA14
 |access-date=7 February 2008 }}
</ref> Therefore, the first day was started by Saturn (1st hour), second day by Sun (25th hour), followed by Moon (49th hour), Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus. Because each day was named by the god that started it, this became the order of the [[Week-day names|days of the week]] in the [[Roman calendar]].<ref name="weekdays">
{{cite journal
 |last1=Falk    |first1=Michael
 |last2=Koresko |first2=Christopher
 |year=2004
 |title=Astronomical names for the days of the week
 |journal=[[Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada]]
 |volume=93 |pages=122–133
 |bibcode=1999JRASC..93..122F |doi=10.1016/j.newast.2003.07.002
 |arxiv=astro-ph/0307398 |s2cid=118954190
}}
</ref> In English, ''Saturday'', ''Sunday'', and ''Monday'' are straightforward translations of these Roman names. The other days were renamed after ''[[Týr|Tīw]]'' (Tuesday), ''[[Woden|Wōden]]'' (Wednesday), ''[[Thor|Þunor]]'' (Thursday), and ''[[Frige|Frīġ]]'' (Friday), the [[Anglo-Saxon gods]] considered similar or equivalent to Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus, respectively.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ross |first=Margaret Clunies |title=Explainer: the gods behind the days of the week |url=http://theconversation.com/explainer-the-gods-behind-the-days-of-the-week-87170 |access-date=13 May 2022 |website=The Conversation |date=January 2018 |language=en |archive-date=13 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513181134/https://theconversation.com/explainer-the-gods-behind-the-days-of-the-week-87170 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Earth's name in English is not derived from Greco-Roman mythology. Because it was only generally accepted as a planet in the 17th&nbsp;century,<ref name="galileo_project">{{cite web
 |last=Van Helden
 |first=Al
 |date=1995
 |title=Copernican System
 |department=The Galileo Project
 |publisher=[[Rice University]]
 |url=http://galileo.rice.edu/sci/theories/copernican_system.html
 |access-date=28 January 2008
|archive-date=19 July 2012
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120719043059/http://galileo.rice.edu/sci/theories/copernican_system.html
 |url-status=live
 }}</ref> there is no tradition of naming it after a god. (The same is true, in English at least, of the Sun and the Moon, though they are no longer generally considered planets.) The name originates from the [[Old English]] word ''eorþe'', which was the word for "ground" and "dirt" as well as the world itself.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia
 |title=earth
 |dictionary=Oxford English Dictionary
 |url=https://www.oed.com/viewdictionaryentry/Entry/59023
 |access-date=7 May 2021
|archive-date=10 May 2021
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510142438/https://www.oed.com/viewdictionaryentry/Entry/59023
 |url-status=live
 }}</ref> As with its equivalents in the other [[Germanic languages]], it derives ultimately from the [[Proto-Germanic]] word ''erþō'', as can be seen in the English ''earth'', the German ''Erde'', the Dutch ''aarde'', and the Scandinavian ''jord''. Many of the [[Romance languages]] retain the old Roman word ''[[Terra (mythology)|terra]]'' (or some variation of it) that was used with the meaning of "dry land" as opposed to "sea".<ref>{{cite web
 |last=Harper
 |first=Douglas
 |date=September 2001
 |title=Etymology of "terrain"
 |website=Online Etymology Dictionary
 |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=terrain
 |access-date=30 January 2008
|archive-date=23 August 2012
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120823192155/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=terrain
 |url-status=live
 }}</ref> The non-Romance languages use their own native words. The Greeks retain their original name, ''[[Gaia (mythology)|Γή]]'' ''(Ge)''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kambas |first=Michael |date=2004 |title=Greek-English, English-Greek Dictionary |location= |publisher=Hippocrene Books |page=259 |isbn=978-0781810029}}</ref>

Non-European cultures use other planetary-naming systems. [[India]] uses a system based on the [[Navagraha]], which incorporates the seven traditional planets and the ascending and descending [[lunar node]]s ''[[Rahu]]'' and [[Ketu (mythology)|''Ketu'']]. The planets are ''[[Surya]]'' 'Sun', ''[[Chandra]]'' 'Moon', ''[[Budha]]'' for Mercury, ''[[Shukra]]'' ('bright') for Venus, ''[[Mangala]]'' (the god of war) for Mars, ''[[Bṛhaspati|{{IAST|Bṛhaspati}}]]'' (councilor of the gods) for Jupiter, and ''[[Shani]]'' (symbolic of time) for Saturn.<ref>{{cite thesis |last=Markel |first=Stephen Allen |date=1989 |title=The Origin and Early Development of the Nine Planetary Deities (Navagraha) |type=PhD |publisher=University of Michigan |url=https://www.proquest.com/openview/b2b11d92cbfe7471459b34ddaa2fa18f/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y |access-date=11 August 2022 |archive-date=13 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513182636/https://www.proquest.com/openview/b2b11d92cbfe7471459b34ddaa2fa18f/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y |url-status=live }}</ref>

The native [[Persian language|Persian]] names of most of the planets are based on identifications of the Mesopotamian gods with Iranian gods, analogous to the Greek and Latin names. Mercury is ''Tir'' (Persian: {{lang|fa|تیر}}) for the western Iranian god Tīriya (patron of scribes), analogous to Nabu; Venus is ''Nāhid'' ({{lang|fa|ناهید}}) for [[Anahita]]; Mars is ''Bahrām'' ({{lang|fa|بهرام}}) for [[Verethragna]]; and Jupiter is ''Hormoz'' ({{lang|fa|هرمز}}) for [[Ahura Mazda]]. The Persian name for Saturn, ''Keyvān'' ({{lang|fa|کیوان}}), is a borrowing from [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] ''kajamānu'', meaning "the permanent, steady".<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/planets |date=20 September 2016 |first=Antonio |last=Panaino |title=Planets |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Iranica |access-date=24 February 2023 |archive-date=24 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230224004240/https://iranicaonline.org/articles/planets |url-status=live }}</ref>

China and the countries of eastern Asia historically subject to [[Sinosphere|Chinese cultural influence]] (such as [[Japan]], [[Korea]], and [[Vietnam]]) use a naming system based on the [[Wuxing (Chinese philosophy)|five Chinese elements]]: [[Water (wuxing)|water]] (Mercury [[wikt:水|水]]星 "water star"), [[Metal (wuxing)|metal]] or gold (Venus [[wikt:金|金]]星 "gold star"), [[Fire (wuxing)|fire]] (Mars [[wikt:火|火]]星 "fire star"), [[Wood (wuxing)|wood]] (Jupiter [[wikt:木|木]]星 "wood star"), and [[Earth (wuxing)|earth]] or soil (Saturn [[wikt:土|土]]星 "soil star").<ref name="weekdays"/>

In traditional [[Hebrew astronomy]], the seven traditional planets have (for the most part) descriptive names—the Sun is חמה ''Ḥammah'' or "the hot one", the Moon is לבנה ''Levanah'' or "the white one", Venus is כוכב נוגה ''Kokhav Nogah'' or "the bright planet", Mercury is כוכב ''Kokhav'' or "the planet" (given its lack of distinguishing features), Mars is מאדים ''Ma'adim'' or "the red one", and Saturn is שבתאי ''Shabbatai'' or "the resting one" (in reference to its slow movement compared to the other visible planets).<ref name=Hebrew>
{{cite journal
 |last1=Stieglitz |first1=Robert
 |date=Apr 1981
 |title=The Hebrew names of the seven planets
 |journal=Journal of Near Eastern Studies
 |volume=40 |issue=2 |pages=135–137
 |doi=10.1086/372867 |jstor=545038 |s2cid=162579411
}}
</ref> The odd one out is Jupiter, called צדק ''Tzedeq'' or "justice".<ref name=Hebrew/> These names, first attested in the [[Babylonian Talmud]], are not the original Hebrew names of the planets. In 377 [[Epiphanius of Salamis]] recorded another set of names that seem to have pagan or [[Canaanite religion|Canaanite]] associations: those names, since replaced for religious reasons, were probably the historical Semitic names, and may have much earlier roots going back to Babylonian astronomy.<ref name="Hebrew"/>  The etymologies for the Arabic names of the planets are less well understood. Mostly agreed among scholars are Venus (Arabic: {{lang|ar|الزهرة}}, ''az-Zuhara'', "the bright one"<ref>{{cite journal
 |first1=F.J.
 |last1=Ragep
 |first2=W.
 |last2=Hartner
 |date=24 April 2012
|title=Zuhara
 |journal=Encyclopaedia of Islam
 |edition=2nd
 |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/zuhara-SIM_8195
 |via=referenceworks.brillonline.com
 |access-date=16 January 2019
|archive-date=9 July 2021
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709220502/https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/zuhara-SIM_8195
 |url-status=live
 }}</ref>), Earth ({{lang|ar|الأرض}}, ''al-ʾArḍ'', from the same root as [[wikt:ארץ|eretz]]), and Saturn ({{lang|ar|زُحَل}}, ''Zuḥal'', "withdrawer"<ref>
{{cite book
 |last1=Meyers    |first1=Carol L.
 |last2=O'Connor  |first2=M.
 |last3=O'Connor  |first3=Michael Patrick
 |date= 1983
|title=The Word of the Lord Shall Go Forth: Essays in honor of David Noel Freedman in celebration of his sixtieth birthday
 |publisher=Eisenbrauns
 |isbn=978-0931464195
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=leQtcmpcQ-EC&q=zuhal+saturn&pg=PA53
 |via=Google Books
}}
</ref>). Multiple suggested etymologies exist for Mercury ({{lang|ar|عُطَارِد}}, ''ʿUṭārid''), Mars ({{lang|ar|اَلْمِرِّيخ}}, ''al-Mirrīkh''), and Jupiter ({{lang|ar|المشتري}}, ''al-Muštarī''), but there is no agreement among scholars.<ref>{{cite book |last=Eilers |first=Wilhelm |date=1976 |title=Sinn und Herkunft der Planetennamen |url=https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/Sitz-Ber-Akad-Muenchen-phil-hist-Kl_1975_0001-0138.pdf |location=Munich |publisher=[[Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities]] |access-date=28 August 2022 |archive-date=10 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221010105840/https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/Sitz-Ber-Akad-Muenchen-phil-hist-Kl_1975_0001-0138.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>
{{cite conference
 |first=Hannes D. |last=Galter
 |publication-date=31 July 1993
|title=Die Rolle der Astronomie in den Kulturen Mesopotamiens
 |trans-title=The role of astronomy in the cultures of the Mesopotamians
 |book-title=Beiträge Zum 3. Grazer Morgenländischen Symposion ( 23–27 September 1991)
 |conference=3.&nbsp;Grazer Morgenländischen Symposion [Third Graz Oriental Symposium]
 |date= 23–27 September 1991
 |place=Graz, Austria
 |publisher=GrazKult
 |isbn=978-3853750094
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dMgfAQAAIAAJ&q=mustari+jupiter
 |via=Google Books
}}</ref><ref>
{{cite web
 |author=al-Masūdī
 |date=1841
|title=El-Masūdī's Historical Encyclopaedia, entitled "Meadows of Gold and Mines of Gems."
 |publisher=Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XaVmAAAAMAAJ&q=utarid+mercury+penman&pg=PA204
 |via=Google Books
}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite web
 |first=Mas'ûdi |last=Ali-Abu'l-Hassan
 |date=1841
|title=Historical Encyclopaedia: Entitled "Meadows of gold and mines of gems"
 |publisher=Printed for the Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SqJEAQAAIAAJ&q=Mirrikh+mars&pg=PA204
 |via=Google Books
}}</ref>

=== Modern discoveries ===
When subsequent planets were discovered in the 18th and 19th centuries, Uranus was named for a [[Uranus (mythology)|Greek deity]] and Neptune for a [[Neptune (mythology)|Roman one]] (the counterpart of [[Poseidon]]). The asteroids were initially named from mythology as well—[[Ceres (mythology)|Ceres]], [[Juno (mythology)|Juno]], and [[Vesta (mythology)|Vesta]] are major Roman goddesses, and Pallas is an epithet of the major Greek goddess [[Athena (mythology)|Athena]]—but as more and more were discovered, they first started being named after more minor goddesses, and the mythological restriction was dropped starting from the twentieth asteroid [[20 Massalia|Massalia]] in 1852.<ref>{{cite book|last=Schmadel|first=Lutz|title=Dictionary of Minor Planet Names|date=2012|edition=6th|publisher=Springer|page=15|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aeAg1X7afOoC&pg=PA15|isbn=978-3642297182}}</ref> Pluto (named after the [[Pluto (mythology)|Greek god of the underworld]]) was given a classical name, as it was considered a major planet when it was discovered.{{citation needed|date=April 2025}}

The names of Uranus ([[wikt:天|天]]王星 "sky king star"), Neptune ([[wikt:海|海]]王星 "sea king star"), and Pluto ([[wikt:冥|冥]]王星 "underworld king star") in Chinese, Korean, and Japanese are [[calque]]s based on the roles of those gods in Roman and Greek mythology.<ref name=bianyulin/><ref>{{cite web |title=Planetary linguistics |publisher=nineplanets.org |url=http://nineplanets.org/days.html |access-date=8 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100407154905/http://www.nineplanets.org/days.html |archive-date=7 April 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{efn|In Korean, these names are more often written in [[Hangul]] rather than Chinese characters, e.g. 명왕성 for Pluto. In Vietnamese, [[calque]]s are more common than directly reading these names as [[Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary|Sino-Vietnamese]], e.g. ''sao Thuỷ'' rather than ''Thuỷ tinh'' for Mercury. Pluto is not ''sao Minh Vương'' but ''sao Diêm Vương'' "[[Yama]] star".<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english-vietnamese/ |title=Cambridge English-Vietnamese Dictionary |access-date=21 September 2022 |archive-date=7 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007123000/https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english-vietnamese/ |url-status=live }}</ref>}} In the 19th century, [[Alexander Wylie (missionary)|Alexander Wylie]] and [[Li Shanlan]] calqued the names of the first 117 asteroids into Chinese, and many of their names are still used today, e.g. Ceres ([[wikt:穀|穀]]神星 "grain goddess star"), Pallas ([[wikt:智|智]]神星 "wisdom goddess star"), Juno ([[wikt:婚|婚]]神星 "marriage goddess star"), Vesta ([[wikt:灶|灶]]神星 "hearth goddess star"), and Hygiea ([[wikt:健|健]]神星 "health goddess star").<ref name=lijing>{{cite journal |author1=李竞 [Li Jing] |date=2018 |title=小行星世界中的古典音乐 |url=http://www.term.org.cn/CN/10.3969/j.issn.1673-8578.2018.03.015 |language=zh-cn |journal=中国科技术语 [China Terminology] |volume=20 |issue=3 |pages=66–75 |doi=10.3969/j.issn.1673-8578.2018.03.015 |access-date=5 May 2023 |archive-date=5 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230505191254/http://www.term.org.cn/CN/10.3969/j.issn.1673-8578.2018.03.015 |url-status=live }}</ref> Such translations were extended to some later minor planets, including some of the dwarf planets discovered in the 21st century, e.g. Haumea ([[wikt:妊|妊]]神星 "pregnancy goddess star"), Makemake ([[wikt:鳥|鳥]]神星 "bird goddess star"), and Eris ([[wikt:鬩|鬩]]神星 "quarrel goddess star"). However, except for the better-known asteroids and dwarf planets, many of them are rare outside Chinese astronomical dictionaries.<ref name=bianyulin>{{cite journal |author1=卞毓麟 [Bian Yulin] |title="阋神星"的来龙去脉 |url=https://nadc.china-vo.org/astrodict/s/2016/committeeArticles/Eris_history_BianYuLin_2007.pdf |journal=中国科技术语 [China Terminology] |volume=9 |issue=4 |date=2007 |pages=59–61 |doi=10.3969/j.issn.1673-8578.2007.04.020 |access-date=21 September 2022 |language=zh-cn |url-access=limited |archive-date=21 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921143511/https://nadc.china-vo.org/astrodict/s/2016/committeeArticles/Eris_history_BianYuLin_2007.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

Hebrew names were chosen for Uranus (אורון ''Oron'', "small light") and Neptune (רהב ''Rahab'', a Biblical sea monster) in 2009;<ref>{{cite news |last=Ettinger |first=Yair |date=31 December 2009 |title=Uranus and Neptune Get Hebrew Names at Last |url=https://www.haaretz.com/2009-12-31/ty-article/uranus-and-neptune-get-hebrew-names-at-last/0000017f-ec5c-ddba-a37f-ee7ecaf10000 |work=[[Haaretz]] |location= |access-date=5 October 2022 |archive-date=5 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221005082216/https://www.haaretz.com/2009-12-31/ty-article/uranus-and-neptune-get-hebrew-names-at-last/0000017f-ec5c-ddba-a37f-ee7ecaf10000 |url-status=live }}</ref> prior to that the names "Uranus" and "Neptune" had simply been borrowed.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Zucker |first1=Shay |date=2011 |title=Hebrew names of the planets |journal=Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union |volume=260 |issue= |pages=301–305 |doi=10.1017/S1743921311002432 |bibcode=2011IAUS..260..301Z |s2cid=162671357 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

After more objects were discovered beyond Neptune, naming conventions depending on their orbits were put in place: those in the 2:3 resonance with Neptune (the [[plutino]]s) are given names from underworld myths, while others are given names from creation myths. Most of the trans-Neptunian planetoids are named after gods and goddesses from other cultures (e.g. [[50000 Quaoar|Quaoar]] is named after a [[Tongva]] god). There are a few exceptions which continue the Roman and Greek scheme, notably including Eris as it had initially been considered a tenth planet.<ref name="WGSBN-Naming-Guidelines">{{cite web
  |title        = Minor Planet Naming Guidelines (Rules and Guidelines for naming non-cometary small Solar-System bodies) – v1.0
  |work        = Working Group Small Body Nomenclature
  |type        = PDF
  |date        = 20 December 2021
|url        = https://www.wgsbn-iau.org/documentation/NamesAndCitations.pdf
  |access-date        = 1 May 2022
|archive-date        = 20 March 2023
|archive-url        = https://web.archive.org/web/20230320000458/https://www.wgsbn-iau.org/documentation/NamesAndCitations.pdf
  |url-status        = live
  }}</ref><ref name="WGSBN-home">{{cite web
  |title      = IAU: WG Small Body Nomenclature (WGSBN)
  |work      = Working Group Small Body Nomenclature
  |url      = https://www.wgsbn-iau.org/
  |access-date      = 9 February 2022
|archive-date      = 8 February 2022
|archive-url      = https://web.archive.org/web/20220208031049/https://wgsbn-iau.org/
  |url-status      = live
  }}</ref>

The moons (including the planetary-mass ones) are generally given names with some association with their parent planet. The planetary-mass moons of Jupiter are named after four of Zeus' lovers (or other sexual partners); those of Saturn are named after Cronus' brothers and sisters, the Titans; those of Uranus are named after characters from [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]] and [[Alexander Pope|Pope]] (originally specifically from fairy mythology,<ref name="Lassell 1852">
{{cite journal
| last = Lassell
| first = W.
| date = 1852
| title = Beobachtungen der Uranus-Satelliten
| journal = Astronomische Nachrichten
| volume = 34
| page = 325
| bibcode = 1852AN.....34..325.
}}
</ref> but that ended with the naming of [[Miranda (moon)|Miranda]]). Neptune's planetary-mass moon Triton is named after [[Triton (mythology)|the god's son]]; Pluto's planetary-mass moon Charon is named after the [[Charon|ferryman of the dead]], who carries the souls of the newly deceased to the underworld (Pluto's domain).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Page/Planets |title=Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature |website=IAU |access-date=27 June 2022 |archive-date=21 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140821014052/http://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Page/Planets |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Exoplanets ===
Exoplanets are commonly named after their parent star and their order of discovery within its planetary system, such as [[Proxima Centauri b]]. (The lettering starts at b, with a considered to represent the parent star.){{citation needed|date=April 2025}}

===Symbols===
{{main|Planetary symbol}}
{| class="wikitable skin-invert" style="margin:1em auto 1em auto; float:right; margin:10px"

|+ Most common planetary symbols
|- style="font-size:smaller; text-align:center;"
| Sun <br /> [[File:Sun symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|☉]] || Mercury <br /> [[File:Mercury symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|☿]] || Venus <br /> [[File:Venus symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|♀]] || Earth <br /> [[File:Earth symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|🜨]] || Moon <br /> [[File:Moon symbol decrescent (fixed width).svg|14px|☾]] || Mars <br /> [[File:Mars symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|♂]] || Jupiter <br /> [[File:Jupiter symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|♃]] || Saturn <br /> [[File:Saturn symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|♄]] || Uranus <br /> [[File:Uranus symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⛢]] or [[File:Uranus monogram (fixed width).svg|14px|♅]] || Neptune <br /> [[File:Neptune symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|♆]]
|}
The written symbols for Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, and possibly Mars have been traced to forms found in late Greek papyrus texts.<ref name=jones-1999>{{cite book
| last = Jones  | first = Alexander
| date = 1999
| title = Astronomical Papyri from Oxyrhynchus
| pages = 62–63
| publisher = American Philosophical Society
| isbn = 978-0-87169-233-7
}}
</ref> The symbols for Jupiter and Saturn are identified as [[monogram]]s of the corresponding Greek names, and the symbol for Mercury is a stylized [[caduceus]].<ref name=jones-1999/>

According to [[Annie Scott Dill Maunder]], antecedents of the planetary symbols were used in art to represent the gods associated with the classical planets. ''Bianchini's [[planisphere]]'', discovered by Francesco Bianchini in the 18th century but produced in the 2nd century,<ref name=imss>
{{cite web
| title = Bianchini's planisphere
| publisher = Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza [Institute and Museum of the History of Science]
| location = Florence, Italy
| url = https://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/galileopalazzostrozzi/object/BianchinisPlanisphere.html
| access-date = 20 August 2018 | url-status=live
| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180227062732/https://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/galileopalazzostrozzi/object/BianchinisPlanisphere.html
| archive-date=27 February 2018 }}
</ref> shows Greek personifications of planetary gods charged with early versions of the planetary symbols. Mercury has a [[caduceus]]; Venus has, attached to her necklace, a cord connected to another necklace; Mars, a spear; Jupiter, a staff; Saturn, a scythe; the [[Sun]], a [[circlet]] with rays radiating from it; and the Moon, a headdress with a crescent attached.<ref name=maunder>
{{cite magazine
| last = Maunder  | first = A.S.D.
| date = 1934
| title = The origin of the symbols of the planets
| magazine = The Observatory
| volume = 57 | pages = 238–247
| bibcode = 1934Obs....57..238M
}}
</ref> The modern shapes with the cross-marks first appeared around the 16th century. According to Maunder, the addition of crosses appears to be "an attempt to give a savour of Christianity to the symbols of the old pagan gods."<ref name=maunder/> Earth itself was not considered a classical planet; its symbol descends from a pre-heliocentric symbol for the [[four corners of the world]].<ref name=high-school-astronomy>
{{cite book
 | last = Mattison | first = Hiram
 | date = 1872
 | title = High-School Astronomy
 | pages = 32–36
 | publisher = Sheldon & Co.
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=XksAAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA32
}}
</ref>

When further planets were discovered orbiting the Sun, symbols were invented for them. The most common astronomical symbol for Uranus, ⛢,<ref name=iancu/> was invented by [[Johann Gottfried Köhler]], and was intended to represent the newly discovered metal [[platinum]].<ref name=bode-uranus>{{cite book
| title = Von dem neu entdeckten Planeten
| publisher = Beim Verfaszer
| url = https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_ZqA5AAAAcAAJ
| last = Bode  | first = J.E.
| date = 1784
| pages = [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_ZqA5AAAAcAAJ/page/n98 95]–96
| bibcode = 1784vdne.book.....B
}}
</ref><ref name=gould-uranus>
{{cite book
| title = Report on the history of the discovery of Neptune
| url = https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_uyANAQAAIAAJ
| last = Gould  | first = B.A.
| publisher = Smithsonian Institution
| date = 1850
| pages = 5, 22
}}</ref> An alternative symbol, ♅, was invented by [[Jérôme Lalande]], and represents a globe with a H on top, for Uranus's discoverer Herschel.<ref name=Francisca>{{Cite journal |title=The meaning of the symbol H+o for the planet Uranus |author=Francisca Herschel|date=August 1917|journal=The Observatory |volume=40 |page=306 |bibcode=1917Obs....40..306H}}</ref> Today, ⛢ is mostly used by astronomers and ♅ by [[astrology|astrologers]], though it is possible to find each symbol in the other context.<ref name=iancu>{{cite web|url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2009/09300-uranus.pdf|title=Proposal to Encode the Astronomical Symbol for Uranus|last=Iancu|first=Laurentiu|date=14 August 2009|website=unicode.org|access-date=12 September 2022|archive-date=2 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002155531/http://www.unicode.org/L2/L2009/09300-uranus.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The first few asteroids were considered to be planets when they were discovered, and were likewise given abstract symbols, e.g. Ceres' sickle (⚳), Pallas' spear (⚴), Juno's sceptre (⚵), and Vesta's hearth (⚶). However, as their number rose further and further, this practice stopped in favour of numbering them instead. (Massalia, the first asteroid not named from mythology, is also the first asteroid that was not assigned a symbol by its discoverer.) The symbols for the first four asteroids, Ceres through Vesta, remained in use for longer than the others,<ref name=asteroids/> and even in the modern day [[NASA]] has used the Ceres symbol—Ceres being the only asteroid that is also a dwarf planet.<ref name=miller/> Neptune's symbol (♆) represents [[Neptune's trident|the god's trident]].<ref name=gould-uranus/> The astronomical symbol for Pluto is a P-L monogram (♇),<ref name="JPL/NASA Pluto's Symbol">
{{cite web
 |title=NASA's Solar System Exploration: Multimedia: Gallery: Pluto's Symbol
 |url=http://sse.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/display.cfm?IM_ID=263
 |publisher=NASA
 |access-date=29 November 2011
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061001015053/http://sse.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/display.cfm?IM_ID=263
 |archive-date=1 October 2006
}}</ref> though it has become less common since the IAU definition reclassified Pluto.<ref name=miller/> Since Pluto's reclassification, NASA has used the traditional astrological symbol of Pluto (⯓), a planetary orb over Pluto's [[bident]].<ref name=miller/>

{| class="wikitable skin-invert" style="margin:1em auto 1em auto; float:right; margin:10px"
|- style="background:#ccf; font-size:smaller;"
|+ Some rarer planetary symbols in Unicode
|- style="font-size:smaller; text-align:center;"
| Earth <br /> [[File:Globus cruciger (fixed width).svg|14px|♁]] || Vesta <br /> [[File:Vesta symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⚶]] || Juno <br /> [[File:Juno symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⚵]] || Ceres <br /> [[File:Ceres symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⚳]] || Pallas <br /> [[File:Pallas symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⚴]] || Hygiea <br /> [[File:Hygiea symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⯚]] || Orcus <br /> [[File:Orcus symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|🝿]] || Pluto <br /> [[File:Pluto monogram (fixed width).svg|14px|♇]] or [[File:Pluto symbol (large orb, fixed width).svg|14px|⯓]] || Charon <br /> [[File:Charon symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⯕]] || Haumea <br /> [[File:Haumea symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|🝻]] || Quaoar <br /> [[File:Quaoar symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|🝾]] || Makemake <br /> [[File:Makemake symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|🝼]] || Gonggong <br /> [[File:Gonggong symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|🝽]] || Eris <br /> [[File:Eris symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⯰]] || Sedna <br /> [[File:Sedna symbol (fixed width).svg|14px|⯲]]
|}
The IAU discourages the use of planetary symbols in modern journal articles in favour of one-letter or (to disambiguate Mercury and Mars) two-letter abbreviations for the major planets. The symbols for the Sun and Earth are nonetheless common, as [[solar mass]], [[Earth mass]], and similar units are common in astronomy.<ref name=iau-style-manual >{{cite book
| title = The IAU Style Manual
| url = http://www.iau.org/static/publications/stylemanual1989.pdf
| date = 1989
| page = 27
| access-date = 8 August 2022
| archive-date = 26 July 2011
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110726170213/http://www.iau.org/static/publications/stylemanual1989.pdf
| url-status = live
}}</ref> Other planetary symbols today are mostly encountered in astrology. Astrologers have resurrected the old astronomical symbols for the first few asteroids and continue to invent symbols for other objects.<ref name=miller>{{cite web|url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2021/21224-dwarf-planet-syms.pdf|title=Unicode request for dwarf-planet symbols|last=Miller|first=Kirk|date=26 October 2021|website=unicode.org|access-date=8 August 2022|archive-date=23 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220323174107/https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2021/21224-dwarf-planet-syms.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> This includes relatively standard astrological symbols for the dwarf planets discovered in the 21st century, which were not given symbols by astronomers because planetary symbols had mostly fallen out of use in astronomy by the time they were discovered. Many astrological symbols are included in [[Unicode]], and a few of these new inventions (the symbols of Haumea, Makemake, and Eris) have since been used by NASA in astronomy.<ref name=miller/> The Eris symbol is a traditional one from [[Discordianism]], a religion worshipping the goddess Eris. The other dwarf-planet symbols are mostly initialisms (except Haumea) in the native scripts of the cultures they come from; they also represent something associated with the corresponding deity or culture, e.g. Makemake's face or Gonggong's snake-tail.<ref name=miller/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://blog.unicode.org/2022/05/out-of-this-world-new-astronomy-symbols.html |title=Out of this World: New Astronomy Symbols Approved for the Unicode Standard |last=Anderson |first=Deborah |date=4 May 2022 |website=unicode.org |publisher=The Unicode Consortium |access-date=6 August 2022 |archive-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806075352/http://blog.unicode.org/2022/05/out-of-this-world-new-astronomy-symbols.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Moskowitz also devised symbols for the planetary-mass moons; most of them are initialisms combined with a feature of their parent planet. The exception is Charon, which combines the high orb of Pluto's bident symbol with a crescent, suggesting both Charon as a moon and the mythological Charon's boat crossing the river [[Styx]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2025/25079-phobos-and-deimos.pdf |title=Phobos and Deimos symbols |last1=Bala |first1=Gavin Jared |last2=Miller |first2=Kirk |date=7 March 2025 |website=unicode.org |publisher=The Unicode Consortium |access-date=14 March 2025 |quote=}}</ref>