Pluto was one of the names of the god Hades. Pluto meant 'riches' and was descriptive of the productivity of the earth, and Pluto's kingdom was commonly believed to be within the depths of the earth.

Mythology

In 1930, 11 year old Venetia Burney of Oxford, England, suggested the new planet be named Pluto after the Greek God of the Underworld. One reason that this name was adopted was because it continued the tradition of naming planets after figures from Greek Mythology. The choice was also deemed appropriate because Pluto is so far distant from the Sun that it was envisaged as being a very dark place, an appropriate analogy with the Underworld that Pluto ruled. Another reason to support the case for Pluto has been suggested. The first two letters of the name Pluto are the initials of Percival Lowell, who predicted the existence of the planet.

Pluto was one of the names of the god Hades. Pluto meant 'riches' and was descriptive of the productivity of the earth, and Pluto's kingdom was commonly believed to be within the depths of the earth. He was the god to whom everyone went after death, and he was accorded respect and reverenced by the living as they committed their loved ones to him when they died. He should not be confused with Satan or the Devil in Christian thought. He was never seen as an evil force or a punisher in Greek thought, but rather as a dispenser of justice. It was by the name Pluto that the Romans adopted the Greek god of the nether regions, often calling him by his Latin name, Dis.