Sir Humphry Davy first isolated magnesium in 1808 using electrolysis on a mixture of magnesia and mercuric oxide. Davy initially suggested the name magnium before magnesium became the standard term derived from the Greek word for locations related to the tribe of the Magnetes.
Magnesium is the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and the eleventh most abundant element by mass in the human body. It is also the fourth most common element in the entire planet, making up 13% of the Earth's mass and forming a massive fraction of the planet's mantle.
A farmer in Epsom, England, noticed water from a local well in 1618 that healed scratches and rashes, leading to the discovery of Epsom salts. The metal itself was isolated in 1808 by Sir Humphry Davy, and the name magnesium was derived from the Greek word for locations related to the tribe of the Magnetes.
Magnesium is the third-most-commonly-used structural metal and has been a main aerospace construction metal since World War I. Despite challenges such as corrosion, creep at high temperatures, and combustion, magnesium alloys are increasing in use in the 21st century to replace aluminium and steel alloys for fuel economy.
World production of magnesium was approximately 1,100 kilotonnes in 2017, with the bulk being produced in China and Russia. The Pidgeon process dominates worldwide production, while the Dow process is the second most used method and involves electrolysis to produce magnesium metal and chlorine gas.