Myths around Us

Once the CRCT kicks off next week, we will be jumping ahead into the world that touches many of us without us knowing it: mythology!  The students will have the opportunity to learn about and present upon mythology from around the world.  Did you know that many everyday things are linked to mythology?  Take a look at the examples below:

• Cars:
  • Toyota Avalon and Cressida
  • Cadillac El Dorado
  • Honda Odyssey
  • Mercury
• Days of the Week:
  • Wednesday (Woden or Odin – Norse god)
  • Thursday (Thor – Norse god)
  • Friday (Freya – Norse goddess)
  • Saturday (Saturn – Roman god who ruled before Jove)
• Constellations:
  • Orion, the Argo, all of the planets and the Pleiades.
  • The Milky Way itself was supposedly the road over which the stars traveled to Jupiter’s palace
• Companies:
  • Nike
  • Midas
• Conversational Words:
  • narcissistic- derived from the name Narcissus who was a Greek figure that was so consumed with his own beauty, he was transformed into a flower while gazing upon the reflection of  himself on the surface of a pond.

Much of the examples can be found above at the Mensa for Kids Mythology Unit on page 16 (Lesson 5).

The next time you encounter an interesting name, it might be one that comes from mythology from somewhere around the world!