Wednesday, January 31, 2007

A shortlist of naming reads

My research for a recent article on trade and brand naming yielded a shortlist of books that are worth checking out whether you find yourself involved in a naming project or are simply curious about how great names are coined:

Alex Frankel's Wordcraft is a New Yorker-style treatment that uses high-profile naming efforts, such as Viagra, Blackberry, and Accenture, to introduce and explore the subject in an entertaining, accessible way.

Steve Rivkin and Fraser Sutherland teamed up to write The Making of a Name, which offers encyclopedic coverage of the discipline of naming and earned a permanent spot in my reference library.

And finally, Igor International, a San Francisco-based naming boutique with some great names to its credit, offers a free 90-page PDF titled Naming the Perfect Beast, which describes how that firm approaches the naming process and is well worth the download.

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