Ever wonder where some of the camera/photographic companies got their names? Many are named for their founders: Hasselblad, Mamiya, Schneider, Voigtlander, Zeiss etc. Sometimes names are hard to pronounce, so acronyms are better: Chinon (from Chino), Cokin (from Coquin), Konica (from Konishi), Tamron (from Tamura). Leica is one of the oldest, using “Lei” from the name of the company founder, and “ca” from camera. Here are how some of the other leaders in the photograhic industry got their names…

AGFA – The name is built on the initials of the firms original German name – Actien-Gesellschaft für Anilin-Fabrikation, founded in 1867. 

CANON – Originally called Seikikogaku Kenkyujo (Precision Optical Industry Co. Ltd.), founded in 1934. The first 35mm camera produced were named, Kwanon, after the Buddhist deity of mercy. The initial Kwanon logo included an image of the goddess with 1,000 arms and flames. In 1935 they registered the name “CANON”, which seems like an Anglicization of Kwanon.

CONTAX – The first four letters derive from Contessa, a German maker of sheet-film cameras taken over by Zeiss-Ikon in 1926. The “AX” is a suffix common to German camera names, although some suggest is comes from another of Zeiss’s cameras the Tenax.

COSINA – Possibly an Anglicized version of the company’s Japanese name Kabushiki-gaisha Koshina, founded in 1959. The first part of the name is a reference to the Koshi area within Nakano, where the founder came from; while the “NA” represents Nakano.

ILFORD – Initially founded in 1879 in Ilford, UK, the Britannia Works Company, it was changed in 1902 to take on the name of the town.

KODAK – The name came from the first simple roll film cameras produced by Eastman Dry Plate Company in 1888. It had no real meaning. 

MINOLTA – The name is derived from the Japanese phrase describing the time of the rice harvest. Minoru refers to rice in its harvestable state, and ta is a rice field. The name also has a Western meaning, as an acronym for Machinery and Instruments Optical by Tashima. Minolta’s ROKKOR lenses are named for the mountains Rokko, near the company’s Osaka headquarters. 

NIKON – When founded in 1917, the company was called Nippon Kōgaku Kōgyō Kabushikigaisha. The name Nikon dates from 1946. Originally the suggestion was Nikko, an acronym made from Nippon Kogaku (Japan Optical Co.). However it was believed the name sounded too weak, so an N was added to the end.

OLYMPUS – The company was originally called Takachiho Manufacturing. Takachiho is a mountain in southwest Japan where the gods are believed to have lived and is analogous to Olympus, home to the gods in Greek mythology. Zuiko translates as “light of god”. 

PENTAX – Founded in 1919 as Asahi Kogaku Goshi Kaisha. Marketed as the Asahi Optical Co., Asahi means “rising sun”. Pentax is a combination of “PENTA” from Pentaprism, and “X” from Contax. It was originally a registered trademark of the East German VEB Zeiss Ikon and acquired by the Asahi Optical company in 1957.

POLAROID – Originally called Land-Wheelwright Laboratories, the company was renamed Polaroid after its first product (1937), a polarizing material used in military instruments and sunglasses. 

RICOH – An Anglicized acronym formed from the original Japanese name for the company, RIKagaku KOgyo, setup by the Institute for Physical and Chemical Research in 1936. Ricoh is also a homonym of the Japanese word for smart, rikoh. 

ROLLEI – Originally called the Werkstatt für Feinmechanik und Optik Franke & Heidecke when it was founded in 1920, the name Rollei was derived from the Roll-film Heidoscop, a stereo camera. 

TOKINA – Established in 1950 as Tokyo Optical Equipment Manufacturing. In the 1970s, the company began manufacturing lenses under its own brand Tokina. The prefix “TO” refers to Tokyo, the suffix “kina” is a Germanization of the Italian word for cinema, cine. 

VIVITAR – Named originally for its founders Ponder & Best, this US company imported a variety of camera brands, including Olympus, and Mamiya. When it started sourcing its own equipment a new name was created, based on the Latin vivere (to live), and the ar/tar suffix common to many of the prominent lenses such as Ektar, and Tessar. 

YASHICA – Originally called Yashima Optical Industries, when founded in 1949. Yashica is a combination of “YASHI” from Yashima, and “CA” for camera, similar to Leica.