10 Unusual origins of names of objects in our daily lives

Have you ever wondered what the origin of the name “cell phone” is? Or why is the “American cup” called that? Well, maybe not. The reality is that many people are so used to the names of certain objects that they rarely stop to wonder where they came from. When we focus on this, we can see that many objects that surround us on a daily basis have names that, at first, are not associated with their use or appearance. While others, the name itself already reveals evidence of where it came from.

With that in mind, the awesome.club decided to research more on this subject and created a list of 10 curious origins of common object names in everyday life. Check out!

The “American cup” is an emblematic utensil that has even become the standard measure for several culinary recipes. Despite the name “American”, this object is legitimately Brazilian. The cup, with the design we know today, was conceived by Nadir Dias de Figueiredo, from Minas Gerais, co-founder of the homonymous company, which holds the patent for the product. The first glasses were produced in Brazil, in 1947, using machines imported from the United States (hence the probable origin for the adjective “American”). Recognized for its Brazilianness, in 2009, it was exhibited at the MOMA museum (Museum of Modern Art) in New York as a symbol of the design of our country.

The tennis player and founder of the Lacoste brand, René Lacoste, created and, in 1933, launched the Polo shirt, with the aim of providing greater comfort for tennis. Before this invention, sportsmen wore a long-sleeved shirt, stiff collar and tie. The shirt of this model received the name “Polo”, because it was inspired by the clothes that were used, since the 19th century, by polo players.

The Brazilian version of the caller ID, called Bina, was originally created to detect and record the phone numbers of people who prank callers.

The term “Bina” is an acronym for the phrase “B Identifies Number of A” which refers to the basic operation of the device. So “B” is the destination number of the call, while “A” is the one that originates it.

Today, on the market, there are basically two types of knobs, the ball and the lever. In addition, there are special models called handles. In the past, however, this diversity did not exist. The word “doorknob” became popular, because the shape of these pieces, for the most part, resembled a small apple (fruit).

In the past, when cars still did not have a sealing and heating system, drivers drove with gloves to protect themselves from low temperatures. Over time, the need arose to allocate a specific compartment in the car to store the gloves – the name “glove compartment” was born there. Even today, the “glove compartment” is present inside vehicles and, despite keeping the old name, it gained another use: storing documents and other objects.

Also known as “T” or “T-extension” is used to connect several appliances in a single outlet. It is an electrical accessory present in more than half of Brazilian homes (57%), according to a survey by the Casa Segura Program. Perhaps someone has already wondered why this so common object is called “benjamim”. A likely explanation for this is that the word “benjamim” originates from the name of the play’s inventor, Reuben Berkley Benjamin, who owns the company. Benjamin Electric Companyfrom United States.

Coca-Cola’s famous “little bottle” nicknamed “KS” is almost unanimous when the question is which packaging keeps the soda’s best flavor. In restaurants or cafeterias, it is not uncommon to see someone asking for a “KS” Coke. But after all, what does “KS” mean? It is nothing more than an acronym for “king size” (“king size”). Launched in 1915, the bottle had a capacity of 237 milliliters, which at the time was the largest volume of Coca-Cola that could be purchased.

There are several models of hair clips, from the simplest, consisting only of an elastic band, to the most sophisticated ones with rhinestones. Many call this versatile accessory “xuxinha”. Some say that the name “xuxinha” was inspired by the eternal “queen of the little ones”, Xuxa Meneghel. During the 1980s and 1990s, the blonde bet on hairstyles that made this accessory stand out. Thus, it did not take long for people, especially children, to want to copy the hairstyles, which popularized the word “xuxinha”.

Until the 1970s, the word “cell phone” had nothing to do with electronics or human communication. In dictionaries, “cellular” basically referred to living cells and biological phenomena. This has changed, starting from studies that explained and illustrated the functioning of a mobile phone network. By means of diagrams, each tower and its represented coverage map, received the name of “cell”, due to the similarity (proved by the figure above) with a biological cell. Over time, they associated the adjective “cellular” to devices that operated in this type of network.

The first of this type of footwear, which we now call sneakers, was designed in the early 18th century for the British Navy. Rubber soles helped sailors not slip on the decks of ships. Gradually, it became popular among the upper classes of society and began to be used in sports. It was the perfect choice for tennis, the most popular sport at the time, as the shoes had a soft rubber sole that was quiet on the court and very comfortable for athletes. With the success among tennis players, the name became associated with the sport.

Among the names of objects mentioned in the post, which one has the most unusual origin? Are there any others you’d like to find out where they came from? Maybe we can do a “version 2” on this topic. It would be pretty cool, right? 🇧🇷