People from around the world use Bluetooth every day, and might only know it as a type of wireless technology, however, the meaning behind the namesake means so much more and people are baffled.
Wondering where the name Bluetooth came from is pretty valid- after all, it has nothing to do with how it operates.
However, the reason for why it was given such a unique name is something that’s mind-blowing, full of history, and has left people utterly shocked.
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Now, we’re not talking recent history. In fact, it dates back to over a thousand years of innovation.
You see, Bluetooth was developed in the 1990s, by the creators of Intel, Ericsson and Nokia.
Initially, they only chose the name as a placeholder 'until marketing could come up with something really cool', but it seems like they enjoyed the name enough that they ended up keeping it on as the official name.
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At the time of its creation, cables were used to share data between devices, and it wasn’t as instantaneous as it is now.
As time passed and Bluetooth became more widely available, the three industry leaders decided that the name behind it was all too fitting not to keep, and when you read what it is, you’ll understand.
That’s because it’s named after King Harold 'Bluetooth' Gormsson.
Over on the Bluetooth website, the brand explains the significance of the name: "In 1996, three industry leaders, Intel, Ericsson, and Nokia, met to plan the standardization of this short-range radio technology to support connectivity and collaboration between different products and industries. During this meeting, Jim Kardach from Intel suggested Bluetooth as a temporary code name.
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"The name dates back more than a millennia to King Harald 'Bluetooth' Gormsson who was well known for two things: Uniting Denmark and Norway in 958," it reads. "[And] his dead tooth, which was a dark blue/grey colour, and earned him the nickname Bluetooth."
Kardach was later quoted as saying: “King Harald Bluetooth…was famous for uniting Scandinavia just as we intended to unite the PC and cellular industries with a short-range wireless link.”
That’s a very fitting name.
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As they were meant to be on the hunt for a permanent name, something changed their minds.
The options were either RadioWire or PAN (Personal Area Networking), and while PAN was the favorite, it already had tens of thousands of hits on the web.
So, that left the brands with RadioWire as a namesake, but the trademark couldn't be completed in time for launch, thus forcing them to keep Bluetooth.
The most amazing thing? The Bluetooth logo is a combination of two symbols, the Younger Futhark runes, Hagall - ᚼ - and Bjarkan - ᛒ - which were Harald’s initials.
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Reacting to this news, a Reddit user said: "I love that it's named after a guy. That's so stupid and bad sci-fiesque that it's charming."
Another user wrote: "It was originally intended to be a placeholder name while the project was in development, but it stuck. It's named after the 10th century Danish King Harald Bluetooth."
Someone else commented: “And all this time, I just thought it was a futuristic font for a ‘b’.”
Topics: History, Technology, World News, Science
Britt Jones