# Renaming the planet Earth?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [April 20, 2015, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091 "2015-04-20T03:14:48Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)
#### Post date: [April 20, 2015, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/41 "2015-04-20T21:15:57Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#):
>
> **Terra** seems to be the unofficially accepted name. I’m happy enough with it.
>
> Sol -\> Mercury -\> Venus -\> Terra (Luna)
Well, yeah. But it just means “Earth” in Latin. Just like it’s “Terre” in French and “Erde” in German. As in, it’s both the name of the planet and the word for that earthy material below your feet.
Hang on. Does any language have a name for the Earth that doesn’t mean “earth” in the other sense? Surely it can’t be the same thing all round.
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### Author:  [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)
#### Post date: [April 20, 2015, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/42 "2015-04-20T22:21:05Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#):
>
> Hang on. Does any language have a name for the Earth that doesn’t mean “earth” in the other sense? Surely it can’t be the same thing all round.
Yes. In English, the is “the World”, which is fairly cognate with the Latin _mundi_. They both used to have a somewhat broader meaning than just “this rock”, but these days, “the World” prettymuch ends either at the top of the atmosphere or at the orbit of our most far-flung artificial satellite.
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### Author:  [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)
#### Post date: [April 20, 2015, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/43 "2015-04-20T23:57:49Z")
> [@eschereal](#):
>
> Yes. In English, the is “the World”, which is fairly cognate with the Latin _mundi_.
That’s not what the word [cognate](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognate) means. They are corresponding words in the two languages, not cognates.
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### Author:  [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/44 "2015-04-21T00:51:20Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#):
>
> Well, yeah. But it just means “Earth” in Latin. Just like it’s “Terre” in French and “Erde” in German. As in, it’s both the name of the planet and the word for that earthy material below your feet.
True, but “Earth” has the problem that it’s also known as “The Earth” - implying that any planet is an earth, only ours is the principal one. Terra has no such issue since no one ever says, “The Terra”.
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### Author:  [@Penfeather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penfeather)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/45 "2015-04-21T03:05:18Z")
Roundworld.
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### Author:  [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/46 "2015-04-21T03:08:30Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#):
>
> I bet 100 kwatloos that that is not a real GUID, but rather something you just typed up in the correct format.
I’m not _that_ geek!
No, I used a GUID generator (where the G is of course for Globe rather than Global)
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### Author:  [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/47 "2015-04-21T03:43:02Z")
> [@Disposable Hero](#):
>
> I think I’m going to call it… ‘Bob’.
You can’t call a planet “Bob.”
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### Author:  [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/48 "2015-04-21T03:55:30Z")
Sol II. Though we’d have to blow up Venus first.
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### Author:  [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/49 "2015-04-21T04:01:10Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#):
>
> 3rd Rock From the Sun
Bonnie and Terry Turner would probably haul us into court.
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### Author:  [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/50 "2015-04-21T04:02:48Z")
> [@Balance](#):
>
> You can’t call a planet “Bob.”
Too late, post 26.
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### Author:  [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/51 "2015-04-21T04:25:38Z")
> [@Lanzy](#):
>
> Too late, post 26.
Take it up with **Disposable Hero**. I wasn’t going to leave him hanging with the quote.
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### Author:  [@G0sp3l](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G0sp3l)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/52 "2015-04-21T15:23:32Z")
> [@Balance](#):
>
> You can’t call a planet “Bob.”
Sure you can, it just takes a year for it to come around.
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### Author:  [@Macca26](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Macca26)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/53 "2015-04-21T15:50:19Z")
> [@Balance](#):
>
> You can’t call a planet “Bob.”
Oh, so now you’re the boss. You’re the King of Bob.
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### Author:  [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/54 "2015-04-21T16:45:20Z")
Gaia
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### Author:  [@RadioWave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RadioWave)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/55 "2015-04-21T17:22:21Z")
Before we get to renaming Earth, can we please do something about our galaxy cause “The Milky Way” just ain’t cutting it. What Greek idiot looked up at the only home we’ll every know, saw 400 billion stars, nebulae, and black holes and thought “it kinda looks like milk. Let’s call it that.”? That’s the sort of thing that happens when you let kids name school buildings. Think how embarrassing it’s going to be when we finally make radio contact with another galaxy and they do an A/S/L. “We’re on Terra near Sol in the galaxy that kind of looks like milk.” A billion years later when we get their reply they’re just going to say “Srsly? What are you, eight years old?”.
I nominate “Harry”?
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### Author:  [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/56 "2015-04-21T17:53:59Z")
> [@RadioWave](#):
>
> Before we get to renaming Earth, can we please do something about our galaxy cause “The Milky Way” just ain’t cutting it.
Then you first have to do something about the term “galaxy”. It’s from the Greek word “gala”, which means “milk”.
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### Author:  [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/57 "2015-04-21T17:59:28Z")
I say we call it “Teal”, a combination of blue and green.
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### Author:  [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/58 "2015-04-21T18:04:20Z")
> [@Disposable Hero](#):
>
> I think I’m going to call it… ‘Bob’.
We’re talking about the guy who buys the dick pills, right?
I approve.
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### Author:  [@Atomic\_Alex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Alex)
#### Post date: [April 21, 2015, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/59 "2015-04-21T22:21:37Z")
> [@Macca26](#):
>
> Oh, so now you’re the boss. You’re the King of Bob.
> [@Balance](#):
>
> Take it up with **Disposable Hero**. I wasn’t going to leave him hanging with the quote.
> [@Balance](#):
>
> You can’t call a planet “Bob.”
Thanks guys, the philistines in this thread didn’t get it 😉 (one of the best animated movies ever btw)
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### Author:  [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)
#### Post date: [April 22, 2015, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/renaming-the-planet-earth/718091/60 "2015-04-22T00:55:44Z")
The Planet Madhouse–truth in advertising…
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