Ho, TreeCoverTeeth, it looks as if yesterday’s blustery winds have provided us with a new bounty!
Somewhat off topic, but back in the late 70’s, when the first incarnation of “Battlestar Galactica” was on, and I and my pals played a little Dungeons and Dragons, one of them made a wooden battleaxe as a prop for our games. I talked him into naming it “Battleaxe Gestaria” to no one’s amusement but my own.
On a somewhat less romantic level, a paraphrase if not a quote from Rudyard Kipling:
And when your bullet flies wide in the ditch
Don’t call your Martini a cross-eyed old bitch
…
In thee old days sailors would name naval guns. One on the USS Constitution was called “Jumper” because of its God-awful recoil…
In fact, the word “gun” itself is derived from a named gun; “Lady Gunhilde” IIRC.
A few of the Mighty Weapons in Hindu Myths (Quotes from Wiki):
Asi- the personification of the first sword created by Brahma.
The Brahmastra- it is considered the deadliest weapon. It is said that when a Brahmastra is discharged, there is neither a counter attack nor a defense that may stop it. It is believed that the Brahmastra never misses its mark and must be used with very specific intent against an individual enemy or army, as the target will face complete annihilation. It is believed to be obtained by meditating on the Creator in Vedic mythology, Lord Brahma, and used only once in a lifetime.
Narayanastra- the personal missile weapon of Vishnu in his Narayana form, this astra (“weapon” in Sanskrit) lets loose a powerful tirade of millions of deadly missiles simultaneously. The intensity of the shower increases with resistance. The only defense is showing total submission before the missiles hit, which will cause them to stop and spare the target.
Parashu- a battleaxe- The parashu was known to have super natural powers. It had four cutting edges, one on each end of the blade head and one on each end of the shaft. The parashu was also known as the most lethal close combat weapon of the epics.’
Pashupatastra- the irresistible and most destructive personal weapon of Shiva discharged by the mind, the eyes, words, or a bow. Never to be used against lesser enemies or by lesser warriors, the Pashupata is capable of destroying creation and vanquishing all beings. It can be used only to uphold Dharma.
Sharanga - one of the personal bows of Lord Vishnu.
Vel- the divine javelin/spear of the Hindu deity Murugan.
Varunastra- the water weapon (a storm), incepted by God Varuna, master of the oceans, rivers, and lakes. This weapon is believed to assume any weapon’s shape, just like water.
Sudarshana Chakra- though it’s not quite an epic weapon I am not familiar with anyone else besides Vishnu/Krishna using the weapon, so though it’s not a “named” weapon, it is a unique weapon of his, thought others may have tried to use it or obtain it. The chakra comprises 10 million spikes in two rows. One row of spikes moving in the opposite direction to give it a serrated edge.
Shiva Dhanush- The Divine bow of Lord Shiva. Associated with the marriage of Rama and Sita: In earlier part of her life, Sita while playing with her sisters had unknowingly moved the table over which the “Shiva Dhanush” had been placed; which was something no one in the palace could do. This incident was however observed by King Janaka and he decided to make this incident as the backdrop for [a marriage test].
Janaka had announced that whoever wanted to marry Sita had to do so only after lifting (which was itself a difficult job) the bow from its place and stringing it. The bow was broken by Lord Rama when he attempted to string the bow, during the [Marriage test] of King Janaka’s daughter, Sita, whereby he won the hand of Sita in marriage
And then the coolest stuff for me growing up as a kid:
A few of the Astras: various weapons of the Gods each imbued with supernatural powers. Usually you would have to pray to turn a weapon of choice (usually an arrow) into being imbued with a power of an astra, and the weapon would become a divine arrow to be used against your enemies.
Hope that’s what you were looking for, there’s certainly plenty more out there in Hindu mythology. And if this shows up in a D&D game or something. Well, at least the legends live on then. 
Zulfiqar, the sword of Muhammad’s son in-law Ali.
Also Visnu’s mace Kaumodaki.
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There’s Zeetha’s sword.
Odin’s spear is called Gungnir.
It comes from the word “gonne.”
There seems to be disagreement on the matter (scroll to the bottom).
There’s Ol’ Painless. What? That gun is legendary!
Then, of course, there is Arthur’s famous spear, Ron
Very cool - thanks, everybody!
The thing is, though, that most of these words aren’t actually personal names. For example, “astra”, as you note, just means “weapon” in Sanskrit, and “dhanush” means “bow” in Sanskrit.
So “Brahmastra”, “Narayanastra”, “Pashupatastra”, “Varunastra”, “Shivadhanush”, just mean “the weapon of Brahma”, “the weapon of [Vishnu in the form] Narayana”, “the weapon of [Shiva in the form] Pashupata [Lord of Creatures]”, “the weapon of Varuna”, “the bow of Shiva”.
Likewise, “vel” is (I believe) a Tamil word for “spear”, while “chakra” is Sanskrit for “wheel” or a discus-type weapon, and “parashu” is Sanskrit for “axe”.
None of these, IMO, really count as personal names for individual weapons. They’re not in the same category as “Sharanga” or the aforementioned “Gandiva”, the name of Arjuna’s bow, or “Pushpa” (literally “flower”), the name of Rama’s chariot (not that a chariot is really a weapon, of course).
Has anyone mentioned the Book of Sword’s Swords?
The ancient Hebrews saw things the same way - I can’t think of a single named weapon in the entire Bible. Of course, they probably would have considered naming weapons idolotry.
From the Bible, one would get the impression that the Hebrews weren’t really big on weaponry, at all. David had his sling, of course, and one of his opponents in warfare (Saul?) had a spear that David stole, but that’s about it for remarkable weapons. Mostly, when they won battles, it wasn’t even using weapons at all, but because God Was On Their Side (trumpets collapsing the walls of Jericho, or the Red Sea flooding Pharaoh’s army, or the like). Even when Sampson had his big scene, his only weapon was the jawbone of an ass.
Nah, they had swords and spears and bows - they’re mentioned several time. Most of the combat in the bible (Joshua, Gideon, Barak, David etc.) involved actual combat, with God essentially acting as a force multiplier. Bringhing down the walls of Jehrico was well and good, but the Israelites still had to storm the city. Remember how Gideon selected his warriors? He had them march all day long, and when he took them down to the river he chose the men who kept their hands on their swords. Samson, in fact was the exception, not the rule - he used a jawbone instead of an actual weapon just to prove how tough he was.
Weapons and armor are mentioned several times, it’s just that they aren’t named or given any particular individual qualities. They were tools, nothing more
What does “merkava” mean?