| Mineral/rock | Derived from or for | | Gadolinite | Johan Gadolin (1760-1852), Finnish chemist and discoverer of yttrium | | Galena | Latin galena = lead ore or dross remaining after melting lead | | Garnet | Latin granatum = a pomegranate since it RESEMBLes their red seeds; alternatively Latin granatus = like a grain since it RESEMBLes seeds or grains embeded in the matrix
| | Gaylussite | Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac (1778-1850), French chemist, Greek lithos = stone | | Gibbsite | George Gibbs (1776-1833), owner of the mineral collection acquired by Yale early in the 19th century | | Glaserite | ??? | | Glauberite | Johann Wilhelm Glauber (1603-1668), German chemist | | Glauconite | Greek glaucos = originally gleaming, later bluish green, silvery, or gray | | Goethite | Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), German poet/philosopher | | Graphite | Greek for graphein = to write due to its use in making pencils | | Grossularite (garnet) | Latin grossularium = gooseberry for its pale green color | | Groutite | Frank Fitch Grout (1880-1958), American petrologist, U of Minnesota | Sources: Fleischer, M, 1975, Glossary of Mineral Species; Lyman, K., ed., 1984, Simon & Schuster's Guide to Gems and Precious Stones; Mitchell, R.S., 1979, Mineral Names What Do They Mean?; Spencer, L.J., M.H. Hay, et al, various dates, "Annual lists of new mineral names", Mineralogical Magazine; Chambers Etymological English Dictionary; Encyclopaedia Britannica; Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary (unabridged).
|
