ξ Draconis (LatinisedtoXi Draconis) is the system's Bayer designation. The designations of the two components as Xi Draconis A and B derive from the convention used by the Washington Multiplicity Catalog (WMC) for multiple star systems, and adopted by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).[10]
It bore the traditional names Grumium. This is a graphic corruption of the Latin Grunnum 'snout',[11] as Ptolemy had described this star as being on the jawbone of the dragon.[8] In 2016, the International Astronomical Union organized a Working Group on Star Names (WGSN)[12] to catalogue and standardize proper names for stars. The WGSN decided to attribute proper names to individual stars rather than entire multiple systems.[13] It approved the name Grumium for the component Xi Draconis A on 12 September 2016 and it is now so included in the List of IAU-approved Star Names.[9]
This star was also known as Nodus IorNodus Primus. Along with Beta Draconis (Rastaban), Gamma Draconis (Eltanin), Mu Draconis (Erakis) and Nu Draconis (Kuma), it was one of Al ʽAwāyd "the Mother Camels", which were later known as the Quinque Dromedarii.[14]
InChinese, 天棓 (Tiān Bàng), meaning Celestial Flail, refers to an asterism consisting of Xi Draconis, Nu Draconis, Beta Draconis, Gamma Draconis and Iota Herculis.[15] Consequently, the Chinese name for Xi Draconis itself is 天棓一 (Tiān Bàng yī, English: the First Star of Celestial Flail).[16]
Xi Draconis A is of spectral class K2-III. The possible companion, Xi Draconis B, is a 16th-magnitude star 316 arcseconds away but, most likely, the pairing is just a line-of-sight coincidence.[17]
^ abKunitzsch, Paul; Smart, Tim (2006). A Dictionary of Modern star Names: A Short Guide to 254 Star Names and Their Derivations (2nd rev. ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Sky Pub. ISBN978-1-931559-44-7.
^Hessman, F. V.; Dhillon, V. S.; Winget, D. E.; Schreiber, M. R.; Horne, K.; Marsh, T. R.; Guenther, E.; Schwope, A.; Heber, U. (2010). "On the naming convention used for multiple star systems and extrasolar planets". arXiv:1012.0707 [astro-ph.SR].
^In medieval manuscripts, both 'nn' and 'mi' were written with four strokes, ıııı, and thus could be easily confused. (That is why we now dot our i's.) Indeed, both the correct and corrupted spellings would have looked rather like Grııııııııııı.
