Samarskite
/səˈmɑːr.skaɪt/noun
A typically black or brown radioactive mineral containing rare-earth elements, niobium, tantalum, uranium, and thorium.
Did you know?Samarskite indirectly inspired the name samarium, the element discovered in 1879 after chemists analyzed this mineral’s rare-earth content.
Etymological Timeline
1839
Russian mineralogy
samarskite
“A newly recognized mineral from the Ilmen Mountains in the Urals”
1847
German
Samarskit
“Mineral name coined by Gustav Rose in honor of Vasily Samarsky-Bykhovets”
19th Century
Russian
Samarsky-Bykhovets
“Surname of the Russian mining official after whom the mineral was named”
1879
French
samarium
“Name given to a newly identified chemical element derived from samarskite”
Modern English
English
samarskite
“A radioactive rare-earth mineral, also called samarskite-(Y) in modern mineral classification”