Ever Wondered Why Is Bluetooth Called Bluetooth?

Bluetooth, as we all know, is a wireless networking technology, famously used for transferring data from one device to another. If you ever wondered how ‘Bluetooth‘ acquired its name, we are here to clear it for you.

Not surprisingly, it had nothing to do with teeth or being blue. Rather, the name was inspired by a Medieval king of Denmark back in between 958 and 970.

In 1994, a group of engineers at Ericsson, a Swedish company, invented a wireless communication technology that promises a secure exchange of data amongst several different devices. Pondering this service, the engineers recalled the legend of Danish Viking king Harald Blåtand (or Harold Bluetooth in English, who got his name because of his fondness for blueberries, which stained his teeth).

According to lore, Blåtand had an uncanny ability to bring people together in non-violent negotiations. His way with words and communication went so far as uniting Denmark and Norway as a single territory. As the king Blatand was known for uniting the nations, similarly, Bluetooth technology was created to allow connectivity and collaboration between different devices.

The Bluetooth logo:

The Bluetooth logo has Harald Blåtand’s initials inscribed on it (in Runic). To pay tribute to his contribution, the engineers combined the initials of his name.

Look at the image. The two lines sticking out of the back of the B actually represent a Runic H — that H for Harald (The Runic H is like an asterisk in English). And the B stands for Blåtand!