Ursa Major do not have long tails, and Jewish astronomers considered Alioth, Mizar, and Alkaid instead to be three cubs following their mother, while the Native Americans saw them as three hunters. Noted children's book author H. A. Rey, in his 1952 book "The Stars: A New Way to See Them," () had a different asterism in mind for Ursa Major, that instead had the "bear" image of the constellation oriented with Alkaid as the tip of the bear's nose, and the "handle" of the Big Dipper part of the constellation forming the outline of the top of the bear's head and
Ursa Major 2001, orbits every 2391 days and is 0.54 times the mass of Jupiter. 47 Ursae Majoris d, discovered in 2010, has an uncertain period, lying between 8907 and 19097 days; it is 1.64 times the mass of Jupiter. The star is of magnitude 5.0 and is approximately 46 light-years from Earth. The star TYC 3429-697-1 (; 48°14′2″, located to the east of θ Ursae Majoris and to the southwest of the "Big Dipper") has been recognized as the state star of Delaware, and is informally known as the Delaware Diamond. Several bright galaxies are found in Ursa Major, including the