Sagan

See also: sagan and saĝan

English

Etymology 1

The unit is derived from the phrase "billions and billions (of stars)", erroneously attributed to the American astronomer Carl Sagan. The lower bound of such a number must be two billion plus two billion, or four billion. Johnny Carson popularized the phrase through his occasional impersonation of Sagan throughout his career.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈseɪɡən/

  • Audio (Southern England)

    (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪɡən

Proper noun

Sagan (plural Sagans)

1. A surname.

Derived terms

• Sagan
• Saganian
• Saganite
• Sagan's number
• Sagan's paradox
• Sagan standard

Noun

Sagan (plural Sagans)

1. (slang, humorous) A unit of measurement equal to at least four billion.
   • 2014, Gabrielle Borisovna, Carl Sagan:

     Today, there is a well-known joke unit of measurement called a Sagan. a Sagan is four billion—the smallest number that could fit the description "billions and billions."

Alternative forms

• sagan

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Proper noun

Sagan

1. A village in Sardasht Rural District, in the Central District of Bashagard County, Hormozgan Province, Iran.

Etymology 3

Proper noun

Sagan

1. Alternative form of Sakan (village in West Azerbaijan, Iran).

Etymology 4

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Proper noun

Sagan

1. A river in southern Ethiopia.

   Alternative form: Segan

   • 1904, Oscar Neumann, From the Somali Coast Through Southern Ethiopia to the Sudan‎^[1], U.S. Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 784:

     I had resolved to pass along the eastern shore of Lake Ganjule, in order to solve the problem of the sources of the river Sagan, the largest affluent of Lake Stefanie, which was supposed to flow out of Lake Ganjule. This I found to be not the case. The sources of the Sagan lie east of the south end of Lake Abaya. But there is a broad channel connecting Lake Ganjule with the Sagan.

2. A town in southern Ethiopia, named for the river.

References

• Sagan at dictionary.reference.com (Jargon File)
• William Safire, ON LANGUAGE; Footprints on the Infobahn, New York Times, April 17, 1994
• Carl Sagan, Billions and Billions: Thoughts on Life and Death at the Brink of the Millennium, Random House, 1997

Anagrams

• Agans, Angas, Nāgas, Sanga, gansa, nagas, nāgas, sanga

Polish

Etymology

From sagan.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsa.ɡan/
• Rhymes: -aɡan
• Syllabification: Sa‧gan

Proper noun

Sagan m pers

1. a male surname

Declension

Declension of Sagan

	singular	plural
nominative	Sagan	Saganowie
genitive	Sagana	Saganów
dative	Saganowi	Saganom
accusative	Sagana	Saganów
instrumental	Saganem	Saganami
locative	Saganie	Saganach
vocative	Saganie	Saganowie

Proper noun

Sagan f (indeclinable)

1. a female surname