The Moon, named after Greek

110 named features. The International Astronomical Union records why each name was chosen, and those reasons are printed below exactly as they were approved.

FEATURES · 110

NAME	TYPE	SIZE	WHY THAT NAME
Apollo	crater	524.2 km	Named to honor Apollo missions.
Rimae Hippalus	rille	266 km	Named from nearby crater.
Rima Hesiodus	rille	251.5 km	Named from nearby crater.
Rimae Archimedes	rille	215 km	Named from nearby crater.
Rima Diophantus	rille	201.5 km	Named from nearby crater.
Rimae Plato	rille	180 km	Named from nearby crater.
Rimae Aristarchus	rille	175 km	Named from nearby crater.
Ptolemaeus	crater	153.7 km	Ptolemy, Claudius; Greek astronomer, mathematician, geographer (c. 87-150).
Montes Archimedes	mons	146.5 km	Named from nearby crater.
Pythagoras	crater	144.6 km	Of Samos; Greek philosopher, mathematician (unkn-fl. c. 532 B.C.).
Hipparchus	crater	144 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-fl. 140 B.C.).
Hecataeus	crater	133.7 km	Greek geographer (unkn-c. 476 B.C.).
Cleomedes	crater	130.8 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-c. 50 B.C.).
Rimae Sosigenes	rille	130 km	Named from nearby crater.
Meton	crater	124.7 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-fl. 432 B.C.).
Endymion	crater	122.1 km	Greek mythological character.
Demonax	crater	121.9 km	Greek philosopher (fl. 2nd century A.D.).
Xenophanes	crater	117.6 km	Of Colophon; Greek philosopher (570(?)-478(?) B.C.).
Plato	crater	100.7 km	Greek philosopher c.428-c.347 B.C.
Paraskevopoulos	crater	98.9 km	John Stefanos; Greek-American astronomer (1889-1951).
Catharina	crater	98.8 km	St. Catherine of Alexandria; Greek theologian, philosopher (unkn-c. 307).
Theophilus	crater	98.6 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-A.D. 412).
Posidonius	crater	95.1 km	Of Apamea; Greek geographer (135(?)-51(?) B.C.).
Alexander	crater	94.8 km	Alexander the Great, of Macedon; Greek geographer (356-323 B.C.).
Icarus	crater	93.7 km	Greek mythical flyer.
Daedalus	crater	93.6 km	Greek mythological character.
Rima Archytas	rille	90.2 km	Named from nearby crater.
Atlas	crater	88.1 km	Mythological Greek Titan.
Aristoteles	crater	87.6 km	Greek astronomer, philosopher (383-322 B.C.).
Rimae Menelaus	rille	87 km	Named from nearby crater.
Heraclitus	crater	85.7 km	Greek philosopher (c. 540-480 B.C.).
Geminus	crater	82 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-c. 70 B.C.).
Anaximenes	crater	81.1 km	Greek astronomer (585-528 B.C.).
Archimedes	crater	81 km	Greek physicist, mathematician (c. 287-212 B.C.).
Rimae Posidonius	rille	78 km	Within crater.
Oenopides	crater	73.5 km	Of Chios; Greek astronomer, geometrician (500(?)-430 B.C.).
Nearch	crater	72.8 km	Nearchus of Crete; Greek explorer (unkn-fl. 312 B.C.).
Philolaus	crater	71.4 km	Of Croton; Greek mathematician, astronomer, philosopher (unkn-fl. 400 B.C.).
Eudoxus	crater	70.2 km	Greek astronomer (c. 408-355 B.C.).
Promontorium Taenarium	promontorium	70 km	Named from cape in Greece; now Matapan or Tainaron.
Plutarch	crater	69.6 km	Greek biographer (c. A.D.46-c. 120).
Anaximander	crater	68.7 km	Greek astronomer (c. 611-547 B.C.).
Hercules	crater	68.3 km	Latin spelling for Greek mythological hero Heracles.
Zeno	crater	66.8 km	Of Citium; Greek philosopher (c. 335-263 B.C.).
Cleostratus	crater	63.2 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-c. 500 B.C.).
Euctemon	crater	62.7 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-fl. 432 B.C.).
Hippocrates	crater	59.2 km	Greek doctor (c. 460-377 B.C.).
Eratosthenes	crater	58.8 km	Greek astronomer, geographer (c. 276-196 B.C.).
Hippalus	crater	57.4 km	Greek explorer (unkn-c. 120).
Leucippus	crater	57 km	Greek philosopher (unkn-fl. c. 440 B.C.).
Marinus	crater	56.6 km	Of Tyre; Greek geographer (unkn-c. 100).
Strabo	crater	54.7 km	Greek geographer (54 B.C.- A.D. 24).
Epigenes	crater	54.5 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-c. 200 B.C.).
Aristillus	crater	54.4 km	Greek astronomer (fl. c. 280 B.C.).
Rima Agatharchides	rille	54.3 km	Named from nearby crater.
Rimae Theaetetus	rille	53 km	Named from nearby crater.
Agatharchides	crater	52 km	Agatharchides of Cnidos; Greek geographer (c. 116 B.C.).
Anaxagoras	crater	51.9 km	Greek astronomer (500-428 B.C.).
Apollonius	crater	50.7 km	Apollonius of Perga; Greek mathematician (c. 262-190 B.C.).
Promontorium Heraclides	promontorium	50 km	Ponticus; Greek astronomer (c. 388-310 B.C.).
Catena Timocharis	catena	48.4 km	Named from nearby crater.
Rimae Atlas	rille	46.8 km	Within crater.
Rima Cleomedes	rille	45.5 km	Within crater.
Agrippa	crater	43.8 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-fl. A.D. 92).
Hesiodus	crater	43.2 km	Hesiod; Greek humanitarian (c. 735 B.C.).
Polybius	crater	40.8 km	Greek historian (204(?)-122(?) B.C.).
Aristarchus	crater	40 km	Greek astronomer (310-230 B.C. ?).
Rima Calippus	rille	40 km	Named from nearby crater.
Harpalus	crater	39.8 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-c. 460 B.C.).
Cepheus	crater	39.4 km	Mythological astronomer, father of Andromeda.
Autolycus	crater	38.9 km	Autolycus of Pitane; Greek astronomer (fl. c. 310 B.C.).
Democritus	crater	37.8 km	Greek astronomer, philosopher (c. 460-360 B.C.).
Rima Conon	rille	37.3 km	Named from nearby crater.
Herodotus	crater	35.9 km	Of Halikarnassus; Greek historian (c. 484-408 B.C.).
Timocharis	crater	34.1 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-fl. c. 280 B.C.).
Calippus	crater	34 km	Calippus of Cyzicus; Greek astronomer (c. 370 B.C.).
Timaeus	crater	32.8 km	Greek astronomer (unkn-c. 400 B.C.).
Archytas	crater	32 km	Greek mathematician (428-347 B.C. ?).
Thales	crater	30.8 km	Of Miletus; Greek mathematician, astronomer, philosopher (c. 636-546 B.C.).
Menelaus	crater	27.1 km	Of Alexandria; Greek geometer, astronomer (c. A.D. 98).
Proclus	crater	26.9 km	Diadochos (The Successor); Greek mathematician, astronomer, philosopher (410-485).
Xenophon	crater	25.5 km	Greek natural philosopher, historian (c. 430-354 B.C.).
Theaetetus	crater	24.6 km	Greek mathematician (c. 417-369 B.C.).
Helicon	crater	23.7 km	Greek astronomer, mathematician (fl. c. 361 B.C.).
Epimenides	crater	22.6 km	Greek philosopher, writer (unkn-fl. 596 B.C.).
Protagoras	crater	21.1 km	Greek philosopher (c. 485-415 B.C.).
Conon	crater	21 km	Conon of Samos; Greek astronomer (c. 260 B.C.).
Pytheas	crater	18.8 km	Of Marseilles; Greek navigator, geographer (c. 308 B.C.).
Theon Senior	crater	18 km	Of Smyrna; Greek mathematician and astronomer (c. A.D. 130).
Diophantus	crater	17.6 km	Greek mathematician (unkn-c. A.D. 300).
Theon Junior	crater	17.6 km	Of Alexandria; Greek astronomer (unkn-c. 380).
Dionysius	crater	17.3 km	St. Dionysius the Areopagite; Greek astronomer (fl. 1st century A.D.).
Melissa	crater	17.2 km	Greek female name.
Sosigenes	crater	17 km	Greek astronomer, chronologist (unkn-fl. 46 B.C.).
Rima Cleopatra	rille	14.7 km	Greek female name.
Euclides	crater	11.8 km	Euclid; Greek mathematician (unkn-c. 300 B.C.).
Sinas	crater	11.7 km	Simon; Greek benefactor (1810-1876).
Boethius	crater	11.2 km	Anicius Manlius Severinus; Roman scholar(c. A.D. 470-524).
Aratus	crater	10.2 km	Aratus of Soli; Greek astronomer (c. 310-240/239 B.C.).
Bessarion	crater	9.8 km	John; Greek scholar (1403-1472).
Galen	crater	9.2 km	Claudius; Greek doctor (c. 129-200).
Ammonius	crater	8.6 km	Greek philosopher (unkn.-c. A.D. 517-526).
Theophrastus	crater	8 km	Greek philosopher and scientist (c. 372-287 B.C.).
Dorsum Thera	dorsum	7.3 km	Greek female name.
Lucian	crater	6.9 km	Of Samosata; Greek writer (125-190).
Mons Herodotus	mons	6.8 km	Named from nearby crater.
Akis	crater	2.3 km	Greek female name.
Artemis	crater	2.3 km	Greek female first name.
Delia	crater	1.6 km	Greek female name.
Mons Agnes	mons	n/a	Greek female name.

Names and their origins come from the IAU Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature (USGS Astrogeology), retrieved 2026-08-14.
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DATA: IAU / USGS Astrogeology · NASA LRO LOLA