Chemical Symbols and Formulas
A.Chemical Symbols
To illustrate chemical reactions and the elements and compounds involved in them, chemists use
symbols and formulas.
A chemical symbol is a one- or two-letter designation of an element.
Some examples of chemical symbols are O for oxygen, Zn for zinc, and Fe for iron.
The first letter of a symbol is always capitalized.
If the symbol contains two letters, the second letter is lower case.
The majority of elements have symbols that are based on their English names.
some of the elements that have been known since ancient times have maintained symbols that are
based on their Latin names, as shown below.
Some chemical elements are named after places on the planet earth.
Elements which are named after currently existing countries and cities
are as:
Polonium, named after Poland.
Francium and gallium, both named after France.
Nihonium, named after Japan
Germanium was named for Germany.
Beryllium was named after the mineral beryl, whose name may have
come from Belur, a city in Karnataka state of India.
Indium gets its name from the indigo color seen in its spectrum, the
Latin indicum meaning "of India", which makes it indirectly named
after India.
Americium was named after the Americas.
Europium was named after Europe.
Berkelium was named after American city Berkeley.
Tennessine and Californium were named after American states
Tennessee and California respectively.
Dubnium and Moscovium were named after Russia's Dubna and
Moscow cities.
This list of chemical elements named after people
Name Symbol Name
Vasili Samarsky-
Samarium Sm
Bykhovets
Gadolinium Gd Johan Gadolin
Americium Am Amerigo Vespucci
Marie Curie
Curium Cm
Pierre Curie
Berkelium Bk George Berkeley
Einsteinium Es Albert Einstein
Fermium Fm Enrico Fermi
Mendelevium Md Dmitri Mendeleev
Nobelium No Alfred Nobel
Lawrencium Lr Ernest Lawrence
Rutherfordium Rf Ernest Rutherford
Seaborgium Sg Glenn T. Seaborg
Bohrium Bh Niels Bohr
Meitnerium Mt Lise Meitner
Roentgenium Rg Wilhelm Röntgen
Copernicium Cn Nicolaus Copernicus
Flerovium Fl Georgy Flyorov
Livermorium Lv Robert Livermore
Oganesson Og Yuri Oganessian
There also elements there name is derived from the
name of planets such as:
Cerium – Ceres, the first asteroid to be discovered. Roman goddess of
grain, similar to the Greek’s Demeter.
Helium – Helios, the Greek name for the Sun
Mercury – Mercury, a planet. Winged Roman god of travel.
Neptunium – Neptune, a blue planet. Roman god of the sea.
Palladium – Pallas, the second asteroid to be discovered. Greek name
given to Athena after she killed a playmate named Pallas or,
according to some legends, the giant Pallas. Palladium was also the
name of a sacred image kept in the temple of Athena at Troy.
Plutonium – Pluto, a dwarf planet. Roman god of the underworld,
said to be able to render himself invisible.
Selenium – Selene, the Greek name for the Moon.
Tellurium – Tellus, the Latin name for the Earth. Roman earth
goddess; also called Terra Mater, similar to the Greek’s Gaea.
Uranium – Uranus, a planet. Greek god of the heavens, son of Gaea.
B. CHEMICAL FORMULAS
a. Chemical formula of elements
The chemical formula and symbol of metals is the same.
For instance, look at the table below:
Name Symbol Formula
Magnesium Mg Mg
Cobalt Co Co
Sodium Na Na
etc
The chemical formula and symbol of nonmetals
i. Symbols and formulas of monoatomic nonmetals are the same
such as noble gases
Name Symbol Formula
Helium He He
Neon Ne Ne
Argon Ar Ar
et
ii. Symbols and formulas of diatomic nonmetals are different such
as halogens, chalcogens and some others
Name Symbol Formula
Fluorine F F2
Chlorine Cl Cl2
Bromine Br Br2
Iodine I I2
oxygen O O2
Nitrogen N N2
iii. Symbols and formulas of polyatomic nonmetals such as noble
gases are different:
Name of element Symbol of an Formula of an
elements element
Phosphorous P P4
Sulfur S S8
b. Chemical formula of compounds
Compounds are combinations of two or more elements. A chemical
formula is an expression that shows the elements in a compound and the
relative proportions of those elements.
For examples
Water is composed of hydrogen and oxygen in a two to one ratio. The
chemical formula for water is H2O. Sulfuric acid is one of the most
widely produced chemicals in the United States and is composed of the
element’s hydrogen, sulfur, and oxygen. The chemical formula for
sulfuric acid is H2SO4.
Summary
A chemical symbol is a one- or two-letter designation of an element.
Compounds are combinations of two or more elements. A chemical
formula is an expression that shows the elements in a compound and the
relative proportions of those elements. Some elements have symbols that
derive from the Latin name for the element.
