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  • Mercury/Hermes is the god of commerce, travel and thievery in Roman mythology. The planet probably received this name because it moves so quickly across the sky.
  • Venus/Aphrodite is the Roman goddess of love and beauty. The planet is aptly named since it makes a beautiful sight in the sky, with only the Sun and the Moon being brighter.
  • Earth is the only planet whose English name does not derive from Greek/Roman mythology. The name derives from Old English and Germanic. There are, of course, many other names for our planet in other languages.
  • Mars/Ares is the Roman God of War. The planet probably got this name due to its red color.
  • Jupiter/Zeus was the King of the Gods in Roman mythology, making the name a good choice for what is by far the largest planet in our solar system.
  • Saturn/Demeter is the Roman god of agriculture and harvest.
  • Uranus/Uranus is the ancient Greek deity of the Heavens, the earliest supreme god, father of the titans.
  • Neptune/Poseidon, was the Roman god of the Sea. Given the beautiful blue color of this planet, the name is an excellent choice!
  • Pluto/Hades is the Roman god of the underworld in Roman mythology. Perhaps the planet received this name because it's so far from the Sun that it is in perpetual darkness.
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14y ago
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12y ago

only the Romans did. it's a little confusing because it's the same gods, just different names. they named the planets after gods as a way of honoring the gods. different gods got different planets for different reasons. one example is the planet mars. mars was the roman name for ares, the greek god of war. mars is a red planet, like the blood that is spilled in war. that is why it was called that. I'm not sure about some of the others, though.

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12y ago

The names for the planets in the Western world are derived from the naming practices of the Romans, which ultimately derive from those of the Greeks and the Babylonians.

For example, Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and was named by the Romans who derived the name from their god Jupiter (the king of the Roman gods, and the equivalent of Zeus in Greek mythology), and Venus is named after the Roman goddess of love, beauty, and fertility.

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Q: Why did the Romans and the greek call the planets after their gods?
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Related questions

Why do people name planets after gods?

that was the way the Romans named their version of the Greek gods/goddess


Why are the gods in Greek mythology tied to the planets?

The gods in Greek mythology are not tied to the planets. The Greek gods were renamed by the Romans and after the discovery of different planets, these such planets were named after these "Roman God's" Ex: Roman-Pluto Greek-Hades


Is roman greek gods an imagery?

Romans copied the Greek gods but changed their names and attitudes when they invaded Greece. They made the gods more aggressive and named most of them after the planets.


Why did the ancient Greeks name planets gods?

I think the Romans named the planets after their gods.


What did Greeks and Romans name planets after?

They named the planets after their gods.


How did murcery get its name?

Named after the messenger of the Roman Gods. (Hermes in Greek) First of all, Romans were the first to name the planets.


Why do people call Uranus Uranus?

Uranus was named after the Roman god of the Sky. Uranus was the father of Saturn in Roman mythology, and Cronos in Greek mythology. Uranus and Cronos were considered titans in Greek mythology, while the Romans considered Uranus and Saturn gods.


Which Greek goddesses and gods are named after planets?

No gods are named after planets. But the planets are named after Roman gods.


How did Pluto get to become a roman god?

The Romans adopted the the Greek gods as their own, giving them new names. Pluto's Greek name is Hades. Roman astronomers later gave the planets the names of their gods and goddesses.


If the planets are named after the Greek and Roman gods is there a planet named Poseidon?

the Greeks called poseidon" poseidon'' and the Romans called poseidon "neptune".


What did Romans do to Greek Mythology?

The Romans, simply put, took Greek mythology and renamed the gods.


What were the planets named after?

Some of the planets were named after greek or roman gods.