Ever wonder where the name Sony came from or what it might even mean? When you’re a site runner like myself or a hardcore Sony fan, you ponder such things. While the answer to the question is an interesting one, more intriguing is the fact that Sony wasn’t always named Sony and was changed in order to cater to American consumers.

After the jump, the meaning behind the name and the original name of Sony.

According to Sony, when the company was first convinced, they went with something a little less easy on the tongue, ‘Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo.’ Try putting that on a box. Even 60 years ago, Japanese companies new that catering to the US market was important and seeing how most Americans couldn’t pronounce their name, co-founder Akio Morita chose the name Sony as a mix of two words.

 These were the Latin word ‘Sonus’ which is the root of sonic and sound, and ‘Sonny’ which was a common American term in the 50’s for a boy.  

Come 1958, Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo would change to Sony.

Discuss:

Aren’t you glad Akio Morita decided to go with something more catchy?

[Via Sony]