Etymology of volcano

The original word for volcano was vulcano (c. 1611) meaning 'burning mountain' from the Latin Vulcanus or Volcanus. Vulcan was the Roman god of fire and metalworking (son of Jupiter and Juno and corresponding to the Greek god Hephaestus) and the term volcano was first applied to Mt. Etna by the Romans; it was viewed as the seat of this God, the place where he forged thunderbolts that caused such eruptions. It was changed to volcano around 1690. A volcano is a vent in the earth's crust, usually a depression or crater atop a somewhat conical hill or mountain which contains molten or hot rock and steam that is ejected from the vent. There are types of volcano: mud, shield, and pseudo.