3.2: The Elements

The Elements

To date, 118 different elements have been discovered.  Each element has a unique number of protons, which is the atomic number of an atom of that element.  Students often get the terms atoms and elements mixed up.  An atom is an entity of matter, it has a nucleus and electrons.  An element is a type of atom, based on the number of protons in the atom's nucleus.  Students in Prep Chem are required to memorize all the name and symbol of all the atoms that are not shaded in the periodic table of figure \(\PageIndex{1}\)

 

UALR students in my class are required to know name and symbol of all the elements in this periodic table that are not shaded If you click on the table it will open a printable PDF of the image.

Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\): UALR students are required to know unshaded elements of this table, so start memorizing them early!

Click here for a Downloadable PDF

Naming Convention

In writing the symbol for an element you always capitalize the first letter and none of the others, and students will loss points if they do not follow this convention.  For example, Co is different than CO, with the first being the element cobalt, and the second a molecule called carbon monoxide

Tough Ones

Many of the elements have their symbols derive from their common English names, like C for carbon, U for uranium and Ca for calcium. Elements have also been named for their properties [such as radium (Ra) for its radioactivity], for the native country of the scientist(s) who discovered them [polonium (Po) for Poland], for eminent scientists [curium (Cm) for the Curie], for gods and goddesses [selenium (Se) for the Greek goddess of the moon, Selene], and for other poetic or historical reasons. Some of the symbols used for elements that have been known since antiquity are derived from historical names that are no longer in use; only the symbols remain to indicate their origin. Examples are Fe for iron, from the Latin ferrum; Na for sodium, from the Latin natrium; and W for tungsten, from the German wolfram. Examples are in Table 2.1.2.

Table 2.1.2: Element Symbols Based on Names No Longer in Use

Element	Symbol	Derivation	Meaning
antimony	Sb	stibium	Latin for “mark”
copper	Cu	cuprum	from Cyprium, Latin name for the island of Cyprus, the major source of copper ore in the Roman Empire
gold	Au	aurum	Latin for “gold”
iron	Fe	ferrum	Latin for “iron”
lead	Pb	plumbum	Latin for “heavy”
mercury	Hg	hydrargyrum	Latin for “liquid silver”
potassium	K	kalium	from the Arabic al-qili, “alkali”
silver	Ag	argentum	Latin for “silver”
sodium	Na	natrium	Latin for “sodium”
tin	Sn	stannum	Latin for “tin”
tungsten	W	wolfram	German for “wolf stone” because it interfered with the smelting of tin and was thought to devour the tin

It is imperative that you memorize the names of the atoms of the elements that are not shaded in figure \(\PageIndex{1}\) and pay extra attention to the ones in table \(\PageIndex{1}\). On an exam you will probably not be asked what is the symbol of hydrogen or oxygen, but of radium or radon.

 

Test Yourself

Homework: Section 3.2

he following Flash Cards require you to type the names of 22 elements that are commonly misspelled.

 

Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

 

For additional practice on names you can do the following quiz. 

Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)