Word Play

Here’ s a little trivia for your Thursday morning. Do you know what Nintendo means? Or how Nokia got its name?

Of course you do. (Not.)

As the Wall Street Journal today explains, “Nintendo” in English translates as “leave luck to heaven,” while Nokia is named for the nearby Nokianvirta River, which in turn is an ancient Finnish word for sable.

It’s part of a fun and anecdotal look at how those and some 14 other electronics companies — including Motorola, Coleco, Magnavox, Samsung and a host of others — came to be known as they are today.

I won’t rob the Journal of its work by listing them all here. Click on the link, though: it’s worth the two minutes.

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About Mike

Mike Buetow is president of the Printed Circuit Engineering Association (pcea.net). He previously was editor-in-chief of Circuits Assembly magazine, the leading publication for electronics manufacturing, and PCD&F, the leading publication for printed circuit design and fabrication. He spent 21 years as vice president and editorial director of UP Media Group, for which he oversaw all editorial and production aspects. He has more than 30 years' experience in the electronics industry, including six years at IPC, an electronics trade association, at which he was a technical projects manager and communications director. He has also held editorial positions at SMT Magazine, community newspapers and in book publishing. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois. Follow Mike on Twitter: @mikebuetow