List of names for the Milky Way

This is a list of the names for the Milky Way in various languages. Some of them derive from myths, which can be found at Milky Way (mythology).

Contents

List of names in various languages

Common names

Birds' Path

The name "Birds' Path" is used in several Uralic and Turkic languages and in the Baltic languages.

Milky Way

Many European languages have borrowed, directly or indirectly, the Greek name for the Milky Way, including English and Latin.

Road to Santiago

The Milky Way was traditionally used as a guide by pilgrims traveling to the holy site at Compostela, hence the use of "The Road to Santiago" as a name for the Milky Way.[2] Curiously, La Voje Ladee "The Milky Way" was also used to refer to the pilgrimage road.[3]

Silver River

The Chinese name "Silver River" (銀河) is used throughout East Asia, including Korea and Vietnam. In Japan, "Silver River" (銀河) means galaxies in general.

River of Heaven

The Japanese name for the Milky Way is the "River of Heaven" (天の川), as well as an alternative name in Chinese (Chinese: 天河; pinyin: Tiān hé).

Straw Way

In a large area from Central Asia to Africa, the name for the Milky Way is related to the word for straw. It has been suggested that the term was spread by Arabs who in turn borrowed it from Armenia.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b Toivanen, Sampsa; Sipilä, Heikki. "What is the Milky Way called in different languages?". Archived from the original on 2006-09-25. http://web.archive.org/web/20060925125110/http://users.tkk.fi/~stoivane/milkyway/. Retrieved 2007-01-06. 
  2. ^ a b Macleod, Fiona (1911). Where the forest murmurs. New York: Duffield & Company. Chapter 21: Milky Way. http://www.sundown.pair.com/SundownShores/Volume_VI/ForestMurmers/milky%20way.htm. 
  3. ^ "The Pilgrim's Way: El Camino de Santiago". http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/telegraph/04camino/04000001.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-06. 
  4. ^ Harutyunyan, Hayk (2003-08-29). "The Armenian name of the Milky Way". ArAS News (Armenian Astronomical Society (ArAS)) 6. http://www.aras.am/ArasNews/arasnews06.html. Retrieved 2009-08-10.