Discoveries and names of heavy chemical elements: from curium to copernicium and beyond

The present state of the synthesis and studies of the properties of heavy nuclei is shortly presented. Main attention is given to superheavy nuclei, in particular to isotopes of copernicium, the heaviest element the discovery and name of which have been approved by IUPAC, and to isotopes of the recently observed element 117. The rules used in naming newly discovered elements and recent changes in these names or these elements are discussed.