While it's obvious to us now that Venus is a planet, it was initially discovered as a bright "star" in the sky. The ancients observed it and named it after the Roman goddess of love and beauty.

It's worth noting that the concept of "planet" was different in ancient times compared to our modern understanding. We now define planets based on their gravitational dominance in their orbits. But back then, the term "planet" simply meant a "wandering star" due to its movement relative to the "fixed" stars.