What is the purpose of having names? Of course it is for someone to remember by. Companies are also like entities with an individual identity and personality. Their name is a sign of trust and reliance for clients. Due to the growing perception of branding, everything sells with a name. Previously you used to buy just a pair of shoes. But today its either Nike or Adidas you prefer for sporting wear, or Don Carlos or Pierre Cardin for fancy footwear.

Some brands are named after things that are unrelated to the nature of the business, but still have a consonance to the brand. But how are brands named? What is their corporate etymology? Behind the naming of every famous brand, there is an interesting history concealed that most of us do not know. Here are 10 famous brands and how they were named:

1. Google:

Did you know that Google was originally named “Backrub”? The company decided to alter in 1998 to ‘Googol’, a word for the number represented by 1 followed by 100 zeros. The name was mistakenly spelt as “Google” thus the name evolved.

2. Apple:

Even though the name and logo design have no relevance to the core purpose of the business, it has a meaning. Apple is the fruit that motivated Newton into discovering gravity. Thus, Apple for Apple Inc is an inspiration for continuous invention and progress.

3. Adidas:

Tell me, do you really know the meaning of Adidas? Well its not “All Day I Dream About Sports”. The name Adidas is in reality is a derivative of the founder’s name Adolf (Adi) Dassler.

4. Adobe Systems:

Adobe was actually named from the Adobe Creek River that ran behind the house of co-founder John Warnock.

5. Caterpillar:

Caterpillar Inc was originally a merger between Holt Tractor Co. and Best Tractor Co. in 1925. A company photographer exclaimed audibly from a Holt tractor that the tracks’ movement bears a resemblance to a caterpillar moving along the ground. Thus the name came into existence and stayed.

6. Coke:

One of the strongest brands in the world, Coke name is derived from the coca leaves and kola nuts used as flavoring. Maker John S. Pemberton altered the ‘K’ of kola to ‘C’ to make the name resonant and consonant.

7. Mercedes:

Most of might know the meaning behind Mercedes Benz logo. But the famous car brand was originally named after Emil Jellineks’ daughter, Mercédès Jellinek. Emil Jellineks was the man behind the engine designed by Wilhelm Maybach and Gottlieb Daimler and officially had his daughter’s name on it. Mercedes was actually his daughter’s nickname.

8. Häagen-Dazs:

These are two made-up words intended to look Scandinavian to the American people. This is called foreign branding. The owner Mattus thought that Denmark was well-known for its dairy products and had a affirmative image in the U.S.

9. Nike:

Yes the Nike logo was designed in $35, but you should known how worthy it is with the name. The company derived its name from “Nike-the Greek goddess of victory”.

10. Toyota – The Lucky Charm:

It was originally derived from the founder’s name Sakichi Toyoda, but later changed through a logo design contest. The new name was written in eight Japanese letters, a number that is supposed to be lucky in Japan.