Astra Zeneca – Brand name background

A forthcoming vaccine out of Europe as a cure for Covid-19 seems to be winning the race to market. It is being made by Astra Zeneca. A giant step forward in the right direction by a giant pharmaceutical company.

Do you ever pause and wonder how linguistic, international naming consultants come up with such awe-inspiring and memorable names?

Naming a great product brand and company names are not achieved by merely throwing random names into the magician’s hat and saying, “white rabbits” and hoping the name hops across the polished boardroom table. Naming is a carefully crafted process with many years of in-depth knowledge and long hours of study and research into the etymology of word origin related to thoughts and ideas. These are usually requested by directives within the prospective Naming worksheet (hopefully supporting company documentation on product details/corporate images is forthcoming). However, with start-ups, they may/may not have the marketing knowledge.

Astra Zeneca about from a massive merger, of not only 2 great companies, but by design, they co-joined two historic names in the bio-medicinal industry. “AstraZeneca” is a made-up name, formulated by a Naming/Banding agency directed to discover a unique name, trademark free, which began with the first and last letter of our English alphabet letter. Furthermore, phonetics must ensure memorability in the customer’s minds, while morphology was to consist of no greater than three syllables and without being an insulting innuendo in any language.

Yet, how did they originally come up with Two names👉 Astra+ Zeneca👈?

Hmm?😷👀👂🌟💢 👆💡

Zeneca was successfully formed in June 1993 by the division of the pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals businesses of Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) into separate companies.

Origin of zen: Zen means https://www.yourdictionary.com/zen

It is from Japanese 禅 (zen ぜん).

In Buddhism: A philosophy of calm, reminiscent of that of the Buddhist denomination. Zen focuses on awareness through the practice of meditation to become extremely relaxed and collected.

“An approach to an activity, skill, or subject that emphasizes simplicity and intuition rather than conventional thinking or fixation on goals.”
Origin of astral

Astra has deep, poignant roots in the Greek Astron, meaning ‘a star’ = /ˈastr(ə)l/; pertaining to resembling the stars and the importance of astral navigation Also one of the five Greeks gods of the “Wandering Stars” Astra-Planeta = and Astraeus (god of the dusk); their spiritual beings; an existence linking to differing psychic and paranormal phenomena- of which the actual human body is considered a counterpart.

Conclusion

The Oxford counterpart for the Covid-19 seems to be racing against the clock to out-smart Astra Zeneca, as delivering the first vaccine against this awful pandemic virus. We don’t know for 100% surety which will have a more effective cure. Yet, what I do know, is that the name Astra Zeneca does stand out in the crowd and is not in lost in all the other generic names containing “Oxford”. Their name is co-joined. It is unique. It has longevity. And a great logo to match.

Astra Zeneca 3D logo
Designed by Interbrand in 1999

Naming Alphabet Soup 101

(c) Rosie Reay and Brighter Naming
Originally published in Ebrovoice.com 2020

Posted in Biotech Naming, Branding, International Naming, Name Changes, Sustainable Brand Names

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