Centuries ago, the Romans identified seven celestial objects that were brighter than the rest in the sky – the Sun, the Moon and five planets – and gave four of them the names of Roman gods – Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn. But one among them was exceptionally red. It might have reminded those ancient astronomers of blood because they called it “Mars,” after their god of war!
The Greeks too, saw their god of war in the planet, and called it Ares. In fact, in 1877 when an American astronomer, Asaph Hall, discovered the two natural satellites of Mars, he decided to name them Deimos and Phobos, thereby carrying forward the analogy! According to Greek mythology, Deimos and Phobos were the sons of Ares. The literal meanings of their names are “dread” and “fear”!
Other ancient cultures had their own names for Mars. To the Chinese it was the “Fire Star” and to the Egyptians, it was “Her Desher,” or “the red one,” showing us yet again how Mars’ distinctive colour made a powerful impression on the minds of our ancestors!
Mars has also been linked to masculinity and strength. Have you seen the symbol used to represent the male gender? It is a circle with an arrow attached to its upper-right part, the arrowhead pointing outwards. This sign owes its origin to the symbol of Mars!
Picture Credit : Google
