Ever wondered who is behind the product you just bought? Or behind the company, disease, phenomenon? Well, wonder no more for here you have a long list of eponymous products, concepts, hotel chains, etc that bear the name of their creator, founder or co-founder, or what not.
The companies shown here are given with either their original or more popular names. You see the date of foundation - if known - in brackets. The first link leads you usually to Wikipedia, and the second to the company site. And when it is about a phenomenon, we provide you with a dictionary term.
Have fun with this! You might be in for a few surprises!
ADIDAS (July 1924) adidas-group.com
1900-1103 Adolf Dassler* gobbler/entrepreneur/the founder of Adidas and the younger brother of Rudolf Dassler, founder of Puma – Herzogenaurach, German Empire (1979/77)
ALBERTSONS (21July 1939)
1906-1017 Joe Albertson* businessman/founder of the Albertsons chain of grocery stores – Yukon, Oklahoma Territory USA (1993/86)
ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE
1864-0614 Alois Alzheimer* psychiatrist/neuropathologist – Marktbreit, Bavaria Germany (1915/51)
AMERICA (1507) The Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci claimed to have understood (back in 1501) that Brazil was part of a continent new to Europeans, which he called the “New World”. This claim inspired the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller to recognize Vespucci’s accomplishments as he in 1507 applied the Latinized form “America” for the first time to a map showing the New World.
1454-0309 Amerigo Vespucci* explorer/navigator/cartographer from whose name the term “America” is derived – Florence, Republic of Florence (1512/57)
AMPERE (A) is the unit of electric current in the International System of Units.
1775-0120 André-Marie Ampère* physicist/ mathematician/ inventor. Considered the father of electromagnetism along with Danish physicist Hans Christian Ørsted – Lyon, Kingdom of France (1836/61)
ANHEUSER-BUSCH (1852) anheuser-busch.com
1806-0927 Eberhard Anheuser* German-American soap and candle maker/co-founder of Anheuser-Busch – Kreuznach, First French Empire (1880/73)
1839-0710 Adolphus Busch* German co-founder of Anheuser-Busch/philanthropist – Kastel, Hesse (1913/74)
BACARDI (4 February 1862) bacardilimited.com -
1814-1014 Facundo Bacardi Massó* Spanish-Cuban businessman/founder of the Bacardi rum distillery/to Cuba at age 15 – Barcelona, Catalonia (1886/71)
BANG & OLUFSEN (1925) bang-olufsen.com
1897-1212 Svend Olufsen* electrical engineer/co-founder of Bang & Olufsen – Quistrup at Struer, Denmark (1949/52)
1900-0314 Peter Bang* engineer/co-founder of Bang & Olufsen – Frederiksberg, Denmark (1957/57)
BARNES & NOBLE (1886) Barnes & Noble began in 1886 as a bookstore called_ Arthur Hinds & Company_. Gilbert Clifford Noble began working there as a clerk, made partner in 1894, and the name was changed to Hinds & Noble. And in 1917 to Barnes & Noble. Many owner changes throughout the years, but the store is nevertheless named for:
Charles M. Barnes, his son William Barnes, son of Charles (died 1945/78), and Gilbert Clifford Noble (died 1936/72)
BASKIN-ROBBINS (1945) baskinrobbins.com. American multinational chain of ice cream and cake speciality shops co-founded by these two guys:
1913-1217 Burt Baskin* businessman/founder of the Baskin-Robbins ice cream parlor chain together with his brother-in-law – Streator, IL USA (1967/54)
1917-1206 Irv Robbins* businessman/ co-founder of the Baskin-Robbins – Winnipeg, MB Canada (2008/90)
BECQUEREL (Bq) the unit of radioactivity in the International System of Units (SI)
1852-1215 Henri Becquerel* engineer/physicist/N. Becquerel was the first person to discover evidence of radioactivity – Paris, France (1908/55)
BLACK & DECKER (September 1910) blackanddecker.com S. Duncan Black and Alonzo G. Decker were co-founders of the Black and Decker tool manufacturing company. After their inventions, drills and other power tools became portable, laying the foundation for the modern power tool industry.
1883-0802 Samuel Duncan Black Sr.* engineer/ entrepreneur/co-founder of Black & Decker – Baltimore, MD USA (1951/67) – Find a Grave
1884-0114 Alonzo G. Decker Sr.* engineer/ entrepreneur/co-founder of Black & Decker – Baltimore, MD USA (1956/72)
BLOOMINGDALE’S (1861) bloomingdales.com
1841-0211 Lyman Bloomingdale* businessman/co-founder of Bloomingdale’s/philanthropist – New York, NY USA (1905/64)
1842-1222 Joseph B. Bloomingdale* businesman/co-founder of Bloomingdale’s – New York, NY USA (1904/61)
BOEING (15 July 1916) boeing.com
1881-1001 William Boeing* engineer/airplane manufacturer – Detroit, MI USA (1956/74)
BOSCH (15 November 1886) bosch.com - multinational engineering and technology company, founded by
1861-0923 Robert Bosch* engineer/ founder of_ Robert Bosch GmbH_/philanthropist – Albeck, Ulm, Germany (1942/80)
BOYCOTT (1880s)
1832-0312 Charles Boycott* land agent whose ostracism by his local community in Ireland gave the English language the term boycott – Burgh St Peter, Norfolk, England (1897/65)
BRAUN (1921)
1890-1025 Max Braun* engineer/ inventor/founder of Braun – Schillgallen, Landkreis Heydekrug, Prussia, German Empire (1951/61)
BUGATTI (1909) bugatti.com
1881-0915 Ettore Bugatti* car designer /manufacturer – Milan, Kingdom of Italy (1947/65)
CARDIGAN is named after the 7th Earl of Cardigan. He led troops who wore this garment into battle.
1797-1016 James Brudenell* 7th Earl of Cardigan, styled as “Lord Cardigan”/British army officer – Hambleden, Buckinghamshire, England (1869/70)
CARLSBERG (1847) carlsberggroup.com. The company is named after the founder’s son Carl Jacobsen.
1811-0902 J.C. Jacobsen* industrialist/founder of the Carlsberg brewery/ philanthropist – Copenhagen, Denmark (1887/75)
1842-0302 Carl Jacobsen* brewer/Carlsberg brewery was named after him/philanthropist – Copenhagen, Denmark (1914/71)
CELSIUS (1742, °C), a temperature scale used in the International System of Units (SI), alongside the Kelvin and the Fahrenheit scales. The term “centigrade” was in use until replaced by celsius in 1948. Named after:
1701-1127 Anders Celsius* astronomer/ physicist/mathematician/proposed in 1742 the Celsius temperature scale which bears his name – Uppsala, Sweden (1744/42)
CESSNA (7 September 1927)
1879-1205 Clyde Cessna* aircraft designer/aviator – Hawthorne, IA USA (1954/74)
CHRYSLER (6 June 1925)
1875-0402 Walter Chrysler* automobile pioneer – Wamego, KS USA (1940/65)
COLT (1855) colt.com
1814-0719 Samuel Colt* inventor/ industrialist/founder of Colt’s Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company – Hartford, CT USA (1862/47)
DIESEL ENGINE (1892)
1858-0318 Rudolf Diesel* mechanical engineer/inventor (diesel engine & diesel fuel) – Paris, Kingdom of France (1913/55)
DISNEY (1923) thewaltdisneycompany.com. Formerly Disney Brothers Studio (1923–1926), Walt Disney Studio (1926–1929) and Walt Disney Productions (1929–1986)
1893-0624 Roy Oliver Disney* businessman/ co-founder of WDP – Chicago, IL USA (1971/78)
1901-1205 Walter Elias Disney* animator/ writer/film producer/co-founder of WDP – Chicago, IL USA (1966/65)
DODGE (1900)
1864-1025 John Dodge* co-founder of Dodge Brothers Company – Niles, MI USA (1920/55)
1868-0517 Horace Dodge* co-founder of Dodge Brothers Company – Niles, MI USA (1920/52)
DOLBY (18 May 1965) dolby.com
1933-0118 Ray Dolby* engineer/ inventor of the noise reduction system Dolby NR/founder of Dolby Laboratories – Portland, OR USA (2013/80)
DOW JONES & COMPANY (November 1882) dowjones.com - The company was founded by three reporters: Charles Dow, Edward Jones, and Charles Bergstresser. It was the latter that convinced Dow and Jones to join him in departing from the Kiernan News Agency, and to form their own company.
1851-1106 Charles Dow* journalist/co-founder of Dow Jones & Company and of _The Wall Street Journal _- Sterling, CT USA (1902/51)
1857-1007 Edward Jones* journalist/statistician/co-founder of Dow Jones & Company and of _The Wall Street Journal _– Worcester, MA USA (1920/63)
1858-0625 Charles Bergstresser* journalist/co-founder of Dow Jones & Company– Berrysburg, PA USA (1923/65)
DUNLOP TYRES (18 November 1889)
1840-0205 John Boyd Dunlop* veterinarian/inventor (pneumatic tyres) – Dreghorn, Scotland (1921/81)
DuPONT (1802)
1771-0624 Éleuthère Irénée du Pont de Nemours* French-American chemist/industrialist/founder of the gunpowder manufacturer E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company – Paris, France (1834/63)
EASTMAN-KODAK (23 May 1892)
1854-0712 George Eastman* entrepreneur/ founder of Eastman Kodak/ philanthropist – Waterville, NY USA (1932/77)
ESTÉE LAUDER (1946) - elcompanies.com
1906-0701 Esteé Lauder* cosmetics manufacturer – Queens, NY USA (2004/97)
FABER-CASTELL (1761) faber-castell.com
1730-0331 Kaspar Faber* entrepreneur/ maker of pencils – Langenzenn, Holy Roman Empire (1784/53-4)
FAHRENHEIT (1724, °F) Click here for the conversion between Celsius and Fahrenheit.
1686-0524 Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit* physicist/ inventor/scientific instrument maker. Inventor of the mercury-in-glass thermometer and Fahrenheit scale– Danzig, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1736/50)
FAZER (1891) Karl Fazer Company
1866-0816 Karl Fazer* businessman/confectioner/founder of Fazer – Helsinki, GD of Finland (1932/66)
FERRARI (13 September 1939) ferrari.com
1898-0220 Enzo Ferrari* racing driver/entrepreneur/founder of Ferrari – Modena, Kingdom of Italy (1988/90)
FORBES (15 September 1917) forbes.com
1880-0514 B. C. Forbes* Scottish-American financial journalist/founder of Forbes magazine/to U.S. at age 24 – New Deer, Aberdeenshire, Scotland (1954/73)
FORD (16 June 1903) ford.com
1863-0730 Henry Ford* captain of industry/founder of the Ford Motor Company/chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production – Greenfield Township, Michigan USA (1947/83)
GEIGER COUNTER (1928) geigercounters.com
1882-0930 Hans Geiger* physicist/inventor – Neustadt, Rhineland, German Empire (1945/62)
GILLETTE (28 September 1901) gillette.com
1855-0105 King Camp Gillette* businessman/inventor of the best selling version of the safety razor – Fond du Lac, WI USA (1932/77)
GOODYEAR (1800) goodyear.com
1800-1229 Charles Goodyear* chemist/inventor of vulcanized rubber – New Haven, CT USA (1860/59)
GUCCI - (1921) gucci.com -
1881-0326 Guccio Gucci* fashion designer/founder of Gucci – Florence, Kingdom of Italy (1953/71)
HANNA-BARBERA (7 July 1957)
1910-0714 William Hanna* animator/ producer – Melrose, NM USA (2001/90)
1911-0324 Joseph Barbera* animator/ producer – Manhattan, NY USA (2006/95)
HARIBO (13 December 1920) haribo.com - The company began its operation in Kessenich, a district of Bonn. And the name of the company comes from Hans Riegel, Bonn.
1893-0404 Hans Riegel Sr.* confectioner/inventor of gummy bear/founder of the Haribo company – Friesdorf, Bonn, German Empire (1945/51)
HARLEY-DAVIDSON (1880) harley-davidson.com
1880-1229 William S. Harley* mechanical engineer/businessman – Milwaukee, WI USA (1943/62)
1881-0211 Arthur Davidson* businessman (Harley-Davidson) – Milwaukee, WI USA (1950/69)
HARRODS (1849) harrods.com
1799-0416 Charles Henry Harrod* business tycoon/founder of Harrods Department Store – Lexden, Colchester, England (1885/85)
HARTWALL (1836) hartwall.fi is a beverage company based in Helsinki, Finland. Founded by
1800-1027 Victor Hartwall* entrepreneur/soda manufacturer – Turku, Sweden-Finland (1857/56)
HERSHEY (8 February 1894) thehersheyscompany.com
1857-0913 Milton S. Hershey* chocolate maker/ philanthropist – Derry Township, PA USA (1945/88)
HERTZ (1935, Hz) The hertz is equivalent to one cycle per second, named after:
1857-0222 Heinrich Rudolf Hertz* physicist/inventor – Hamburg, German Confederation (1894/36)
HESBURGER (1980) hesburger.com
1946-1230 Heikki Salmela* entrepreneur/founder of the fastfood chain Hesburger – Turku, Finland
HEWLETT-PACKARD Company (July 2, 1939)
1912-0907 David Packard* electrical engineer – Pueblo, CO USA (1996/83)
1913-0520 Bill Hewlett* businessman - Ann Arbor, MI USA (2001/87)
HILTON (31 May 1919) hilton.com
1887-1225 Conrad Hilton* hotelier – San Antonio, New Mexico Territory USA (1979/91)
HOOVER - (2 June 1908) hoover.com
1849-0818 William Henry Hoover* entrepreneur/manufacturer of vacuum cleaners – North Canton, OH USA (1932/82) Find a Grave
IKEA (28 July 1943) ikea.com - The name IKEA comes from Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd (the family farm where he was born) and the nearby village Agunnaryd (his hometown in Småland in southern Sweden).
1926-0330 Ingvar Kamprad* founder of IKEA – Pjätteryd, Sweden (2018/91)
ILLY (1933) illy.com
1892-1007 Francesco Illy* (b Illy Ferenc) Hungarian businessman/founder of illy/inventor of coffee machinery – Temesvár, Austria-Hungary (1956/63)
JCPENNEY ( 14 April 1902)
1875-0916 James Cash Penney* entrepreneur/ founder of JCPenney – Hamilton, MO USA (1971/95)
JEANS - Not named after a person, but a city! The Genoese in Italy have a claim to the creation of the rough denim cloth then called “Blue Jean”, from which derives the modern name of jeans, used by sailors for work and to cover and protect their goods on the docks from the weather. During the Republic of Genoa, Genoese merchants and sailors exported this cloth throughout Europe. Gênes, the French word for Genoa, may be the origin of the word “jeans”. In the French city Nîmes, weavers tried to reproduce jean fabric, but instead developed a similar twill fabric that became known as denim, “de Nîmes" , meaning “from Nîmes”.
JOHN DEERE (1837) deere.com
1804-0207 John Deere* blacksmith/inventor/ founder of _Deere & Compan_y – Rutland, VT USA (1886/82)
KELLOGG’S (19 February 1906) kelloggs.com
1860-0407 Will Keith Kellogg* industrialist/founder of the Kellogg Company – Battle Creek, MI USA (1951/91)
KELVIN (K) the primary unit of temperature in the International System of Units (SI), it is an absolute thermodynamic temperature scale, i.e. uses absolute zero as its zero point.
1824-0626 William Thomson* 1st Baron Kelvin/mathematical physicist (Kelvin scale)/ engineer – Belfast, Ireland (1907/83)
KRAFT FOODS (1926) kraftheinzompany.com
1874-1211 James L. Kraft* Canadian-American entrepreneur/inventor/the first to patent processed cheese – Stevensville, ON Canada (1953/78)
KRUPP (1599)
The Krupp family was a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen (begun in 1587 when trader Arndt Krupp moved there) noted for its production of steel, artillery, ammunition and other armaments, and the family company continued all the way to the 19th century through Alfred Krupp:
1812-0426 Alfred Krupp* steel manufacturer/inventor – Essen, Germany (1887/75)
LEE (1912) lee.com
1849-1209 Harry David Lee* businessman/founder of the HD Lee Mercantile Company, inventors of Lee Jeans – Vermont, USA (1928/78)
LEVI-STRAUSS (1 May 1853) levistrauss.com
1829-0226 Levi Strauss* German-American businessman/founder of Levi Strauss & Co./to U.S at age 18 – Buttenheim, Kingdom of Bavaria (1902/73)
LIPTON (1890) lipton.com
1848-0510 Thomas Lipton* entrepreneur (Lipton teas)/yachtsman – Glasgow, Scotland (1931/83)
LOUIS VUITTON (1854)
1821-0804 Louis Vuitton* fashion designer/ businessman - Anchay, Jura, France (1892/70)
MACKINTOSH (1824)
1766-1229 Charles Macintosh* chemist/inventor of waterproof fabric and the Mackintosh raincoat – Glasgow, Scotland (1843/76)
MELITTA (1908) Melitta-group.com
1873-0131 Melitta Bentz* inventor of the coffee filter – Dresden, Germany (1950/77)
MERCEDES-BENZ (28 June 1926) Daimler (1890) merged with Benz & Cie (1883) in 1926. Although the company traded as Daimler-Benz, it gave the name Mercedes-Benz to its cars to preserve the respected Mercedes brand.
1834-0317 Gottlieb Daimler* automobile industrialist – Schorndorf, Württemberg, German Confederation (1900/65)
1844-1125 Karl Benz* (b Vaillant) automobile engineer/engine designer – Mühlburg, German Confederation (1929/84)
1889-0916 Mercédès Jellinek* known for her father Emil Jellinek having Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft’s line of Mercedes cars named after her – Vienna, Austria-Hungary (1929/39)
to MESMERIZE -
1734-0523 Franz Mesmer* physician/studied animal magnetism – Iznang, Germany (1815/80)
McDONALD’S (15 May 1940) mcdonalds.com
1902-1126 Maurice McDonald* co-founder of McDonald’s – Manchester, NH USA (1971/69)
1909-0216 Richard McDonald* co-founder of McDonald’s – Manchester, NH USA (1998/89)
MORSE CODE (around 1837) Named after Samuel Morse, the original numerical coding was expanded by Alfred Vail in 1840 to include letters and special characters, so it could be used more generally.
1791-0427 Samuel Morse* portrait painter/co-creator of Morse code/helped to develop the commercial use of telegraphy – Charlestown, MA USA (1872/80)
1807-0925 Alfred Vail* machinist/ inventor/co-creator of the Morse code/helped to develop the commercial use of telegraphy – Morristown, NJ USA (1859/51)
NESTLÉ (1866) nestle.com
1814-0810 Henri Nestlé* German-Swiss confectioner/founder of Nestlé – Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany (1890/75)
NICOTINE - The French ambassador to Portugal, Jean Nicot, brought tobacco leaves and seeds as he returned to France. Carl Linnaeus named the flowering plant - at the time believed to be beneficial to health - after Nicot.
1530-xxxx Jean Nicot de Villemain* diplomat/ scholar/famous for being the first to bring tobacco to France – Nîmes, Kingdom of France (1604/c. 74)
NOBEL ENTERPRISES started as Nobel Industries Limited (1870) by Alfred Nobel for the production of the new explosive dynamite in the United Kingdom.
1833-1021 Alfred Nobel* Swedish chemist/ inventor of dynamite/bequeathed his fortune to establish the Nobel Prize – Stockholm, Sweden-Norway (1896/63)
NOBEL PRIZE (first awarded 1901) nobelprize.org
1833-1021 Alfred Nobel* Swedish chemist/ inventor of dynamite/bequeathed his fortune to establish the Nobel Prize – Stockholm, Sweden-Norway (1896/63)
NORDSTROM (1901) nordstrom.com
1871-0215 John W. Nordstrom* (b Johan Nordström) Swedish-American businessman/co-founder of the Nordstrom store chain/to USA at 16 – Alvik, Luleå, Sweden (1963/92)
OLDSMOBILE (21 August 1897)
1864-0603 Ransom E. Olds* pioneer of the American automotive industry (Oldsmobile) – Geneva, OH USA (1950/86)
OPEL - (21 January 1862) opel.de
1837-0509 Adam Opel* industrialist/founder of the automobile company Adam Opel AG – Rüsselsheim, Hesse, Prussia (1895/58)
OTIS (20 September 1853) otisworldwide.com
1811-0803 Elisha Otis* founder of the Otis Elevator Company – Halifax, VT USA (1861/49)
PAULIG (1876) Paulig Group, a Finnish coffee company. Named after:
1850-0720 Gustav Paulig* German-Finnish businessman/founder of the coffee roastery Paulig/to Finland at age 20 – Lübeck, German Confederation (1907/56)
PONZI SCHEME - named after:
1882-0303 Charles Ponzi* swindler/con artist – Lugo, Italy (1949/66)
PORSCHE (1931) porsche.com
1875-0903 Ferdinand Porsche* Austro-Bohemian automobile pioneer – Reichenberg, Austria-Hungary (1951/76)
REESE’S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS (15 November 1928) hersheyland.com/reeses
1879-0524 H. B. Reese* chocolatier/businessman/founder of the H. B. Reese Candy Company – York County, PA USA (1956/76)
RENAULT (25 February 1899) renaultgroup.com
1864-1128 Fernand Renault* one of the founders of Renault – Paris, France (1909/44) Oh Brother
1872-0514 Marcel Renault* racing driver/industrialist, co-founder of the carma_ker Renault_ – Paris, France (1903/31)
1877-0212 Louis Renault* industrialist/one of the founders of Renault – Paris, France (1944/67)
REUTERS (October 1851)
1816-0721 Paul Reuter* (b Israel Beer Josaphat) German-British pioneer of telegraphy and news reporting/founder of Reuters news agency – Kassel, German Confederation (1899/82)
RITZ (1 June 1898) ritzcarlton.com
1850-0223 César Ritz* hotelier/founder of the Hôtel Ritz in Paris, a.o. – Niederwald, Switzerland (1918/68)
ROLLS-ROYCE (1906)
1863-0327 Henry Royce* co-founder of Rolls-Royce – Alwalton, Huntingdonshire, England (1933/70)
1877-0827 Charles Rolls* co-founder of Rolls-Royce – Berkeley Square, London, England (1910/32)
RYANAIR (8 July 1985) ryanair.com
1936-0202 Tony Ryan* billionaire businessman/philanthropist/co-founder of the Ryanair airline – Limerick Junction, County Tipperary, Ireland (2007/71)
SANDWICH
1718-1113 John Montagu* 4th Earl of Sandwich/military leader/statesman after whom sandwich is named – Chiswick, Middlesex, England (1792/73)
SEARS (1892)
1863-1207 Richard Warren Sears* businessman/ the founder of Sears, Roebuck and Company with his partner Alvah Curtis Roebuck – Stewartville, MN USA (1914/50)
SHRAPNEL SHELL - Henry Shrapnel was a British Army officer and inventor credited with creating the shrapnel shell, which carried several bullets or pieces of metal set to explode on impact. Today, shrapnel refers to pieces of a bomb.
1761-0603 Henry Shrapnel* army officer/ inventor – Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire, England (1842/80)
SIDEBURNS
1824-0523 Ambrose Burnside* railroad executive/inventor/industrialist whose distinctive facial hair inspired the word sideburns – Liberty, IN USA (1881/57)
SIEMENS (1 October 1847) siemens.com
1816-1213 Werner von Siemens* industrialist/founder of Siemens – Lenthe, German Confederation (1892/75)
SINEBRYCHOFF (1819) sinebrychoff.fi is a Finnish brewery and soft drink company
1789-xxxx Nikolai Sinebrychoff* businessman/ founder of the Sinebrychoff brewery in Helsinki – Gavrilov, Russian Empire (1848/c. 58)
SINGER (1851) singer.com -
1811-1027 Isaac Singer* actor/ inventor/founder of what became one of the first American multi-national businesses, the Singer Sewing Machine Company – Pittstown, NY USA (1875/63)
ŠKODA (1925) skoda-auto.com
1839-1118 Emil Ritter von Škoda* Czech engineer/ founder of Skoda Works – Pizén, Bohemia, Austrian Empire (1900/60)
SMITH & WESSON (1852) smith-wesson.com
1808-1028 Horace Smith* gunsmith/inventor/ businessman – Cheshire, MA USA (1893/84)
1825-0518 Daniel B. Wesson* firearms designer/ industrialist - Worchester, MA USA (1906/81)
STOCKMANN (1862) stockmanngroup.com
1825-0114 Georg Franz Heinrich Stockmann* German businessman/founder of Stockmann in Helsinki – Ritzerau, Schleswig-Holstein (1906/80)
TACO BELL (21 March 1962) tacobell.com
1923-0903 Glen Bell* entrepreneur (Taco Bell) – Lynwood, CA USA (2010/86)
TESCO (1919) tescoplc.com
1877-0622 T.E.Stockwell* wholesale tea dealer whose business associate Jack Kohen used Stockwell’s initials TES in the name of his new company (Tesco) – Islington, Middlesex, England (1947/69)
1898-1006 Jack Cohen* grocer/ businessman (Tesco) – Whitechapel, London, England (1979/80)
TESLA (1 July 2003) tesla.com
1856-0710 Nikola Tesla* engineer/ inventor – Smiljan, Austrian Empire (1943/86)
TIFFANY (18 September 1837) tiffany.com
1812-0215 Charles Lewis Tiffany* jewelry trader/founder of New York City’s Tiffany & Co – Killingly, CT USA (1902/90)
TIM HORTONS (17 May 1964) Canadian multinational coffeehouse and restaurant chain, based in Toronto.
1930-0112 Tim Horton* hockey player (NHL 100) /entrepreneur – Cochrane, ON Canada (1974/44)
TOMMY HILFIGER (1985) global.tommy.com
1951-0324 Tommy Hilfiger* fashion designer/ entrepreneur – Elmira, NY USA
TOYOTA (28 August 1937) global.toyota
1894-0611 Kiichiro Toyoda* 豊田 喜一郎とよだ きいちろう businessman/founder of Toyota Motor Corporation/son of Toyoda Loom Works founder Sakichi Toyoda. His decision to change Toyoda’s focus from automatic loom manufacture into automobile manufacturing created what would become Toyota Motor Corporation.– Kosai, Shizuoka, Empire of Japan (1952/57)
VERSACE (1978) versace.com
1946-1202 Gianni Versace* fashion designer/socialite/businessman – Reggio Calabria, Italy (1997/50)
VOLT (V) and VOLTAGE - Volt is a SI unit of electric potential that is named after:
1745-0218 Alessandro Volta* physicist/ chemist/inventor of the electrical battery – Como, Duchy of Milan (1827/82)
WALDOR ASTORIA (Waldorf Hotel 1893 + Astoria Hotel 1897) hilton.com/en/waldorf-astoria
1848-0331 William Waldorf Astor* American-British attorney/politician/businessman (hotels & newspapers) – New York City, NY USA (1919/71), and his cousin (who named his rivaling hotel after Astoria, Oregon)
1864-0713 John Jacob Astor IV* business magnate/real estate developer/sank aboard the Titanic – Rhinebeck, NY USA (1912/47)
WALGREENS (1901) walgreens.com
1873-1009 Charles Rudolph Walgreen* businessman/founder of Walgreens/son of Swedish immigrants – Knoxville, IL USA (1939/66)
WALMART (2 July 1962) walmart.com
1918-0329 Sam Walton* entrepreneur/ founder of Walmart – Kingfisher, OK USA (1992/74)
WATT (1776)
1736-0130 James Watt* inventor/ engineer/ chemist – Greenock, Renfewshire, Scotland (1819/83)
WELLS FARGO (24 January 1929)
1805-1212 Henry Wells* freight agent/businessman (American Express Company & Wells Fargo) – Thetford, VT USA (1878/72)
1818-0520 William Fargo* pioneer expressman (American Express Company & Wells Fargo)/Mayor of Buffalo – Pompey, NY USA (1881/63)
WENDY’S (15 November 1969) wendys.com - The founder of Wendy’s Dave Thomas named his company after his daughter
1961-0914 Wendy Thomas-Morse* daughter of the founder of Wendy’s. In addition to being the namesake, her likeness was used as the Wendy’s logo – Columbus, OH USA
WINCHESTER (1866) Winchester Repeating Arms -
1810-1130 Oliver Winchester* founder of Winchester Rifles – Boston, MA USA (1880/70)
ZEISS (1846) Carl Zeiss AG, manufacturer of optical systems and optoelectronics, founded by
1816-0911 Carl Zeiss* optician/ scientific instrument maker/ businessman – Weimar, German Confederation (1888/72)
ÅNGSTRÖM - Angstrom (Å) is a metric unit of length equal to 10−10 meter (m), and Its symbol Å is a letter of the Swedish alphabet. Named after:
1814-0813 Anders Ångström* physicist/one of the founders of the science of spectroscopy – Medelpad, Sweden (1874/59)
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Updated 21.3.2023