Question

Write the symbols for the elements copper, lead, gold, mercury.

Answer 1

Hint: Symbols are the abbreviation of any language used to indicate or represents the object, idea and linkage. A chemistry symbol is the notation of a chemical element. e.g He is the chemical symbol of helium atoms.

Complete Solution :
- Chemical symbols are the shorthand method to write all the chemical elements instead of writing their full name. Scientists used one or two Latin alphabet letters to indicate the chemical elements. These symbols are standardized to every element in the language of chemistry. To write a complete name of each element in a compound can makes their study very complex and non-understandable, so to avoid such complications chemical symbols is used. A chemical symbol is mainly consists of one or two initial alphabets of the element name. The chemical symbols of elements are mostly derived from the chemical name of the element. In chemistry there are more than 118 elements are known and each element have a unique symbol of representation.

- Chemical symbol of many elements such as hydrogen, helium, lithium, and barium directly derived from their chemical names. These elements are represented by H, He, Li, and be respectively. But there are so many elements like copper, gold, lead, and mercury, their chemical symbols derived from Latin language.
(I) copper is a transition metal that is represented by the chemical symbol ‘Cu’. This symbol is derived from Latin word cuprum.
(II) Gold is a metallic element represented by the chemical symbol ‘Au’. This symbol is derived from Latin name of gold ‘Aurum’.
(III) ‘Pb’ is the chemical symbol of lead, which is derived from a Latin word ‘plumbum’.
(IV) Mercury is represented by the chemical symbol ‘Hg’, which is derived from its Latin word ‘Hydrargyrum’.

Note: some chemical symbol is derived from Latin language word of chemical element because Latin is a dead language, so there is no possibility of any change in this language.