What name does C.S. Lewis give Mars in Out of the Silent Planet?

C.S. Lewis calls Mars “Malacandra” in Out of the Silent Planet. The name is used by the planet’s inhabitants and helps distinguish Lewis’s imagined world from the astronomical Mars known on Earth.

The protagonist, Elwin Ransom, reaches Malacandra after being kidnapped by the physicist Weston and the businessman Devine. He initially fears that he has been taken to face sacrifice, but his understanding changes as he encounters the planet’s intelligent species and learns their languages.

Malacandra is divided into regions and inhabited by different rational species, including the hrossa, séroni, and pfifltriggi. The novel was published in 1938, before the first spacecraft visits to Mars. Lewis therefore built its setting from astronomy, mythology, philosophical speculation, and his critique of imperial ambition.