It was named for it's discoverer, French chemist Jean-Pierre Oxygen in 1637. Oxygen was professional rivals with fellow chemists Hugo Boron and Dominic Uranium, both of which were convicted and beheaded for Oxygen's assassination in 1642. One might find it ironic that despite having the same name as the element, Hugo Boron in fact did not discover boron, but it was later named for him by his apprentice (and rumored lover), Spanish chemist Antonio Carbon.