A
The creativity of some of the most successful brands makes them recognizable and memorable. However, the origins of them are more interesting than you might think.
Rolex, the whisper of success
According to Hans Wilsdorf, founder of the exclusive watch, he tried everything to give his new product a proper name. Wilsdorf was looking for something short that could be easily pronounced. It also had to look good on the watch's surface.
After combining all the letters in thousands of ways and coming up with a hundred names, none seemed powerful enough. But a trip on a horse-drawn carriage changed it, because a "genius," as he called it, whispered the word "Rolex" into his ear.
Zara, taking inspiration from a movie
When Amancio Ortega wanted to name his clothing business, he called it "Zorba," like the 1964 movie, Zorba The Greek, as he was a big fan of Anthony Quinn.
However, shortly before the opening in 1975, he realized that his store was pretty close to a bar named, "Zorba." Since it would be very confusing to the customers to have 2 businesses with the same name in such a small distance, Ortega decided to add an "a" and remove the "b" creating the name of one of the most recognizable Spanish brands in the world.
Häagen-Dazs, Danish?...pride
This ice cream went a long way to satisfy the tastes of the American public. Its creator, Reuben Mattus, was actually a Jewish immigrant from Poland who lived in the United States.
Naming his ice cream Häagen-Dazs, he fulfilled a double purpose. Mattus wanted to honor Denmark, the only country that defended Jewish people during World War II, so he used Danish spelling in the name of his brand. He also wanted to add a bit of exoticism (异国情调), since it was ice cream of the highest quality. He was sure the name would give his product a more distinguished image.
1. How did Hans Wilsdorf come up with Rolex?
A. He was struck by his inspiration. B. A man called Genius told him.
C. He combined all the letters in many ways. D. The horse carriage helped him.
2. What do we learn from the passage?
A. Anthony Quinn created the name of Zara.
B. The creation of Zara is based on Zorba.
C. Häagen-Dazs is a Danish brand.
D. Reuben used Danish spelling in Häagen-Dazs only to honor Denmark.
3. What do the names of the three brands have in common?
A. Their origins are interesting but confusing.
B. They used to have different names.
C. They are easy to recognize and memorize.
D. They came from foreign languages originally.
【答案】1. A 2. B 3. C
【解析】
【分析】
这是一篇应用文。很多成功品牌的创造力让它们易于辨认和记忆，但它们背后的故事比你想象中更有趣。文章介绍了三个著名品牌名字的起源。
【1题详解】
细节理解题。根据Rolex, the whisper of success部分的“After combining all the letters in thousands of ways and coming up with a hundred names, none seemed powerful enough. But a trip on a horse-drawn carriage changed it, because a "genius," as he called it, whispered the word "Rolex" into his ear.”（在用数千种方式组合所有字母并且想出100个名字后，似乎没有一个足够响亮、有力。但是一次乘马车的旅行改变了所有这一切，因为一个“天才”，他这样称呼它，在他的耳边轻声说“劳力士”这个词）可知，Hans Wilsdorf想了很多名字都觉得不够响亮，后来某天突然想到了“劳力士”这个名字。汉斯·威尔斯多夫是灵感的启发才让他想到劳力士的。故选A。
【2题详解】
细节理解题。根据Zara, taking inspiration from a movie部分的“When Amancio Ortega wanted to name his clothing business, he called it "Zorba," like the 1964 movie, Zorba The Greek, as he was a big fan of Anthony Quinn.（当Amancio Ortega想给他的服装公司取名时，他叫它Zorba，就像1964年的电影 Zorba The Greek，因为他是Anthony Quinn的超级粉丝）和“Ortega decided to add an "a" and remove the "b" creating the name of one of the most recognizable Spanish brands in the world.”（所以Ortega决定加上一个a去掉b，这样就创造了世界上最知名的西班牙品牌之一（Zara））可知，Zara 的创立是基于Zorba。故选B。
【3题详解】
细节理解题。根据文章第一段的“The creativity of some of the most successful brands makes them recognizable and memorable.”（一些最成功的品牌的创造力让它们易于辨认和记忆）再结合下文所列举的三个品牌，可知它们的共同点是品牌名字易于辨认和记忆。故选C。
【点睛】
