Democritus, a Greek philosopher, is credited with naming the atom.
Democritus, living around 400 B.C., proposed that matter could not be divided infinitely. He theorized that eventually, you would reach a particle so small it could not be cut. He called these fundamental, indivisible particles "atomos," which translates to "uncuttable" in Greek. While Democritus' idea was philosophical and lacked experimental evidence, it laid the groundwork for the atomic theory we understand today. It's important to note that his "atoms" are vastly different from the atoms we understand today in chemistry and physics; however, he provided the name.
While John Dalton later formalized the modern atomic theory in the 19th century, based on scientific evidence, Democritus' philosophical concept provided the initial term that would eventually be used. Dalton's work built upon the earlier ideas, providing experimental support and refining the model of the atom.
Therefore, while many scientists contributed to our understanding of the atom, Democritus is recognized for initially coining the term.
