November/December 2006 Issue

Sources for “What’s in a Name”

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Number of companies rebranding: Interview with William Lozito of Strategic Name Development.

Among 150 fictitious companies: “Spoof brand names snapped up for real” BBC News, November 17, 2003.

Names starting with B, C and S: “A Name’s Sake,” Adweek, April 24, 2006.

Holding company Axa: Xignux, Interbrand press release.

Moratorium on drug names starting with X or Z: United States Adopted Names Council, based at the American Medical Association.

Adobe Systems is fighting the use of “photoshop”: Adobe: Permissions and Trademark Guidelines.

Pronunciation of Google in Mandarin: Google: China Daily.

Church of Scientology trademarks: Church of Scientology website.

Churches dropping “baptist” from their names: “Afraid of scaring away potential members, Baptist churches cloak identity,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Jan. 16, 1999.

Southern Baptist Convention has considered dropping “Southern” eight times: Southern Baptist Convention, Public Relations Office.

Columbus Children’s Hospital Emergency Department: Columbus Children’s Hospital Press Release, June 6, 2006.

Margaret Mitchell and Tote the Weary Load: Margaret Mitchell, Reporter, edited by Patrick Allen, 2000.

$100 million gift from University of North Dakota alum: “Puck Politics,” Salon.com, March 8, 2001.

Indiana elementary school name change: Warren G. Harding Elementary School, Hammond, Ind.

Exxon Valdez becomes the SeaRiver Mediterranean: National Marine Fisheries Service newsclip, October 12, 2002.

Clark Tx becomes Dish: DISH Network press office.

Agra, Oklahoma becomes Viagra: KTST Radio Station.

Among the 50 million .com internet addresses: Verisign, Dennis Forbes, the longest domain name URL.

Thai word for Bangkok: Bucknell University, Linguistics Department; University of Pittsburg Asian Studies Center.

Llanfynydd name change: Carmarthenshire County Council, Wales, Press Office.

Supercalafajilisticespeealadojus: Album cover, Poster from 1951.

Bill Wyman gets sued: “Legal Row Over Bill Wyman’s Name,” BBC News, 2002.

American Trial Lawyers Association changes name: American Association for Justice, Press Office.

Idaho gubernatorial candidate becomes “Pro-Life”: Idaho Press, April, 2, 2006.

U.S. Senate candidate becomes “None of the Above”: “Candidate Wants to be ‘None of the Above,'” MSNBC.com, July 21, 2006.

Russian Governor becomes Harry Potter: “Russian Harry Potter Stands for Office,” BBC News, March 3, 2003.

North Dakota’s wintry image: North Dakota Chamber of Commerce.

South Central L.A.: Los Angeles Councilmember Bernard Park’s office.

New York’s laws named after crime victims: New York State Attorney General’s Office.

Brazil recognizes only 5 racial categories:
The Economist , 2006.

Siemens trademarks Zyklon:
United States Trademark Office , 2002.

Auschwitz gets renamed: World Heritage Centre, 2006.

Prince Charles may change his name:
BBC News , 2005.

Parma Ham: European Union, 2003. An overview of the case can be found here.

A new name for kangaroo meat: October 2006 newsletter of the Kangaroo Industry Association of Australia.

McDonald’s offered rappers $5 for Big Mac raps: “McDonald’s Buying Way into Hip-Hop Song Lyrics,” Marc Graser, Advertising Age, March 28, 2005.

Tupac on Rolling Stone Rolling Stone coversof April 4, 1996; Oct. 31, 1996; Aug. 7, 1997; Jan 22, 1998; and Aug. 24, 2006.

“Baby Got Backpack”: “
Freedom Rock,” J. Freedom du Lac, Washington Post, September 6, 2006.

Sonny Sandoval and Neveah: Sonny Sandoval appearance on Cribs MTV, 2000

Popularity of name: Social Security Office, 2006

Love Story and the name Jennifer: Social Security Office, 1970-1984

Sex and the City and the name Aidan: Social Security Office, 2000-2006.

Malaysia outlaws certain names:
BBC News, 2006.

3 Americans named ESPN:
ESPN, 2004.

Muhammed Ali:
“Muhammed Ali Sells Rights to Name”mBBC News, April 11, 2006; Forbes, April 12, 2006.

Iran banned foreign words: “So English Is Taking Over the Globe. So What,” New York Times, August 6, 2006.

German citizen Khaled el-Masri: ACLU, Press Release, May 12, 2006.

Global War on Terror name changes: Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism, Secretary Rumsfeld’s U.S. Officials Retool Slogan for Terror War,” Eric Schmitt and Tom Shanker, New York Times, July 26, 2005; Chief Naval Officer’s Remarks on Navy’s 231st Birthday, October 12, 2006; President Bush’s 2006 State of the Union Address, January 31, 2006; Secretary Rumsfeld’s remarks at the 107th Convention of Veterans of Foreign Wars, August 28, 2006.

Congress debates “backronym” bills: “The Fine Art of Legislation Appellation,” Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times, May 8, 2006; CAN-SPAM and ENRON from the Library of Congress.

Rep. Don Young names SAFETEA-LU for his wife: “The Fine Art of Legislation Appellation,” Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times, May 8, 2006.

Sen. John Sununu quote: “The Fine Art of Legislation Appellation,” Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times, May 8, 2006.

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Readers also told us to just give it to you straight when we need to ask for your support, and seeing how matter-of-factly explaining our inner workings, our challenges and finances, can bring more of you in has been a real silver lining. So our online membership lead, Brian, lays it all out for you in his personal, insider account (that literally puts his skin in the game!) of how urgent things are right now.

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