It was the Greeks who first called it milky way, I believe, the milk was from hera's breasts.<br /><br />The !Kung of the Kalahari call it "The backbone of night", which is my favourite. Sagan had squite a bit on different names for the Milky Way in "Cosmos".<br /><br />Jon <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em> Arthur Clarke</p> </div>