Who Vulcan was and Where He Lived
PrintThe word volcano comes from Vulcan, the ancient Roman god of fire. According to mythology, Vulcan lived under Mount Etna, which is still the most active volcano in Italy, and toiled as a blacksmith beneath other Roman volcanoes.
Some 2,000 years ago, when the Roman Empire was at its powerful peak, its culture and influence spread across Europe and northern Africa. The word volcano eventually made its way into dozens of diverse languages, starting with the Latin-based Romance languages: Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Romanian.
Here’s an interesting sampling of other adoptions:
| Afrikaans (a Dutch–South African language) | vulkaan |
| Albanian | vullkan |
| Danish | vulkan |
| English | volcano |
| Frisian (a Germanic language) | fulkaan |
| Manx (a Gaelic language) | volcaan |
| Swahili (an African language) | volkeno |
| Turkish | volkan |
This content has been re-published with permission from SEED. Copyright © 2024 Schlumberger Excellence in Education Development (SEED), Inc.