Online Encyclopedia
List of companies named after people
This is a list of companies named after people. For other lists of eponyms (names derived from people) see Lists of etymologies.
- 20th Century Fox – William Fox
- A&M Records – Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss
- Abbott Laboratories – Dr. Wallace Calvin Abbott (1888)
- Adam Opel AG – Adam Opel
- adidas – Adi Dassler
- Alza – name of the founder Alex Zaffaroni.
- Aston Martin – Lionel Martin
- Audi – founder August Horch (audi is Latin for horch which means listen in English)
- Avery Dennison – R. Stanton Avery
- B&Q – from the initials of its founders, Block and Quayle
- Baedeker's – Karl Baedeker
- BEA Systems – from the first initial of each of the company's three founders: Bill Coleman, Ed Scott and Alfred Chuang.
- Beck's – co-founder Heinrich Beck (1873)
-
Bell Labs – Alexander Graham Bell
- Also: BellSouth
- Benz & Cie. (later Daimler-Benz) – Carl Benz
- Bose Corporation – Amar Bose
- Cadbury – John Cadbury opened his shop in 1824
- Casio – Tadao Kashio
- Chrysler – Walter Chrysler
- Citroën – André Citroën
- Corel – from the founder's name Dr. Michael Cowpland. It stands for COwpland REsearch Laboratory.
- Cray Research – Seymour Cray
- Daimler-Benz (later DaimlerChrysler) – Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz
- DaimlerChrysler – Gottlieb Daimler and Walter Chrysler
- Dassault Group – Marcel Dassault
- De Lorean – John De Lorean
- Debian – project founder Ian Murdock named it after himself and his girlfriend, Debra.
- Dell – Michael Dell
- The Dow Chemical Company – Herbert Dow
- Dow Jones & Company – Charles Dow and Edward Jones
- DuPont – Eleuthère Irénée du Pont
- Edison Records – Thomas Edison
- Eli Lilly and Company – Eli Lilly
- Ericsson – Lars Magnus Ericsson
- Ferrari – Enzo Ferrari, founder
- Ford Motor Company – Henry Ford
- Gartner – Gideon Gartner
- Ghirardelli Chocolate Company – Domingo Ghirardelli
- Glock – Gaston Glock
- Goldwyn Picture Corporation (later merged into MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)) – a combination of the names of Samuel Goldfish (he later adopted the name Samuel Goldwyn), Edgar and Archibald Selwyn
- Hanna-Barbera Productions – William Hanna and Joseph Barbera
- Harley-Davidson – William Harley and Arthur Davidson
- Harvey Norman – Gerald Harvey and Ian Norman
- Hewlett-Packard – William Hewlett and David Packard
- Honda – Soichiro Honda
- Honeywell – Mark Honeywell
- Horlicks – James Horlick and William Horlick who founded the company in Chicago in 1873
- IKEA – from an acronym using the initials of the founder Ingvar Kamprad, who was from a family farm called Elmtaryd, which was near the village of Agunnaryd.
- JCPenney – J.C. Penney
- Kawasaki Heavy Industries – Shozo Kawasaki
- Lamborghini – Ferruccio Lamborghini
- Levi Strauss & Co – Levi Strauss
- Louis B. Mayer Pictures (later merged into MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)) – Louis B. Mayer (original name Eliezer Meir)
- Mattel – from founders Harold "Matt" Matson and Elliot Handler
- Mazda – Jujiro Matsuda , also possibly inspired by Zoroastrian god Ahura Mazda.
- McDonald's Corporation – Dick McDonald and Mac McDonald
- MGM or Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer – after the last names of Samuel Goldfish and Edgar and Archibald Selwyn and Louis B. Mayer
- Mitel – from Mike and Terry's Lawnmowers after the founders Michael Cowpland and Terry Matthews
- Nestlé – Henri Nestlé who created the milk-based food in 1867
- Peugeot – Armand Peugeot who founded the company in 1882
- Philips – Gerard Philips, who founded the company in 1891
- Porsche – Ferry Porsche
- Procter & Gamble – William Procter and James Gamble
- Renault – Louis Renault
- Rolls-Royce – Charles Rolls and Henry Royce
- RSA Security – from the first letters of the last names of founders Ronald Rivest, Adi Shamir and Len Adleman.
-
Sears – Richard Sears
- Formerly Sears, Roebuck – Sears and Alvah Roebuck
- Siemens AG – Werner von Siemens
- Singer Corporation – Issac Merritt Singer, inventor, improvements in the design of the sewing machine
- Stewart-Warner – John K. Stewart and Arthur P. Warner
- Suzuki – Michio Suzuki
- Tata – Jamshetji Tata
- Tesco – from T. E. Stockwell
- Thomson – Elihu Thomson
- THX – from the name of the technology's inventor and the audio technology of a 'crossover' amplifier: Tomlinson Holman
- Toyota – Sakichi Toyoda
- TVR – from the first name of the company founder TreVoR Wilkinson
- Waitrose – named after founders: Wallace Waite and Arthur Rose
- The Walt Disney Company – Walt Disney
- Wal-Mart – Sam Walton
- Warner Bros – the brothers Jack Warner, Sam Warner, Harold Warner and Albert Warner
- Yamaha Corporation – Torakusu Yamaha
Also see
Last updated: 01-22-2005 00:59:28