Expert: Jayendra Upadhye - 3/16/2005

Question
Can you help me?

I have emailed the following questions to people who should know the answers, i.e. a Professor at Cambridge Univ and to the head people at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire and numerous others.

However, they have not replied to my emails.

I was hoping that you may be able to help, or direct me to a site or person that can.

Please, if you don't know the answer I would be grateful if you would let me know.

My questions are:

1. With the planets in our solar system being named after Greek Gods,
Who named the Earth, Earth and what does earth mean?

2. When was the Earth first recorded officially as being the Earth?

3. What was Earth called before it was called Earth and who called it Earth?

Do you think these are 64 million dollar questions?

Hope you can help me.

Kind regards
Terry Campbell


Answer
Hi!
Terry earth shaking questions these! :)
How old are you?
'Cause the answer would greately depend on that!
1 - Actually "earth" is only an "english" name!
   The french and italians call it with separate names no
   doubt!
   I believe there was another name equally well used to
   denote earth and that was "giaia" related words
   are "geo-physical", "geo-logy" etc where "geo" connotes
   earth!
   So dont get bogged down as if an english name is the
   end of all things!
   We Indians call her by different names such as
   Bhumi, Prithvi - "property" of the solar king Prithu.
   Dharani - the one that bears (physically supports) us
   all. etc.
2 - Hey! Come on now! That name is a very highly localised
   one. And certain things arent documented at all. Can we
   ever tell who first named england england?
3 - Again terry, The earth has been called different names
   down the ages..by different people.
   I remember reading somewhere that (ea)rth comes out of
   some god's name EA that has some assyrian conmnmections
   to it. But i cannot now remember.
4 - No these arent 64 million dollar questions, but rather
   trivial ones.
   For it hardly matters who calls it what! we have been
   around only a fleeting instant in the long long history
   of 4.5 billion years of earth!
   It would rather exist even if we were to become extinct
   tomorrow! how does it matter what we call it then?
Jayen