When I was writing the first part of the “Evolution series” (don’t take the name too serious) I knew I will write another one, since there are much more than just 10 most recognizable logos out there, right?

Hundreds and thousands of logos are there in the world but only a few of them become classic and recognizable. But mostly we don’t care (or just don’t think) about what they mean, why those colors are used, who’s depicted in the logo, how it looked like before, etc. Usually we just don’t care. But not all of us.

Some design-nerds (including me) see a logo not only as a symbol of a brand but as an art as well. With it’s meaning, history (maybe) and how did the designer of this and that great logo come to the final version that we see everywhere.

Of course, designers of the logo might change as the time goes by, that’s why we see dramatic changes in the logo when a company decides to restyle it.

So today, I’ve decided to compile another 10 most famous logos here and show how they evolved through the years.

1. Microsoft

Well well known brand, huh? Without Microsoft the history of computers (and maybe the whole history) would be different. In my own opinion, the logo itself is not really a great piece of arts, but it’s recognizable all around the globe. The logo we see today was designed by Scott Baker. It is also referred to as “Pacman Logo” due to the cut in the “O”. See the changes:

2. Yahoo

Back in the days (like 1997-98) there was only Yahoo for me… Since it was the only search engine I knew. Did you know that Yahoo didn’t have a logo in 1994? And did you know that Yahoo stands for “Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle” and vulgar, rude and unsophisticated at the same time?

3. Shell

The Shell logo we see today is a variation of the one created in 1971 by Raymond Loewy. Prior to that version the older logos looked way less professional and kiddish.

4. Sony

How did they come up with such a name? Ok. At first, until 1955 it was Totsuko. And three years later they decided to change the name to Sony Corporation. So why “Sony”? It is a combination of two words: Latin “sonus” – the root of words “sound” and “sonic” and the other word is “sonny boy”, a popular expression in Japan at those times to describe a young person with a free and pioneering spirit. Hence the name – “Sony”.

5. BMW

Oh “beamer”! I love the car, man. With it’s fierce look, the BMW cars symbolize power and mature. Everybody knows BMW logo, right? Well, did you know that BMW (Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (Bavarian Motor Works)) logo’s white and blue colors depict Bavarian flag? There are many versions of what inspired the designer while doing it…but all comes to the colors of Bavarian flag.

6. Audi

I bet you have already visualized the four rings logo? What they stand for? The four rings in the Audi logo stand for the merge of four companies: Audiwerke, Horch, DKW, and Wanderer, which formed a new company Auto Union. And “Audi” stands for “listen” in Latin.

7. NBA

I love this game! Did I just say their well-known slogan? Hell yeah! We all love the game but who’s the guy in the logo??? Ladies and gents, please welcome – Jerry West a.k.a. Mr Clutch. He is widely regarded to as the best guard of the game. Mr Clutch used to play for Lakers (!)

8. Kodak

Well, the latest Kodak logo really disappointed me…Why did they remove the well-known and memorable K sign??? Not a word more.

9. IBM

IBM used to be International Time Recording Company as you may see from their first logo. Then, it became Computing Scale Company and later International Business Machines. Paul Rand added the stripes to the logo that we see today in 1972, which symbolizes “speed and dynamism”.

10. Nokia

Nokia wasn’t producing cell phones since the day one. The company changed their production field many times, so the logo changed dramatically since it first came out. Look at the scary fish-head (I wonder what it would be like if they used the first logo today!)

That’s it for today. Please share this if you liked it! Thanks!

by Azamat "Bohed" E.

TrueKolor.net Owner. Professional Graphic Designer.

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