ETYM New Lat., from Ytterby, in Sweden. Related to Erbium.
A silvery metallic element that is common in rare-earth minerals; used in magnesium and aluminum alloys; SYN. Y, atomic number 39.
Silver-gray, metallic element, symbol Y, atomic number 39, atomic weight 88.905. It is associated with and resembles the rare earth elements (lanthanides), occurring in gadolinite, xenotime, and other minerals. It is used in color-television tubes and to reduce steel corrosion.
The name derives from the Swedish town of Ytterby, near where it was first discovered 1788. Swedish chemist Carl Mosander (1797–1858) isolated the element 1843.