The Google Logo and Its History

Is there anyone in the world who has never seen the characteristic, colorful letters that form the word “Google”? This is the most popular search engine that introduces new changes to its logo from time to time. Today we will take a closer look at it.

…The search engine was known under the name “BackRub”, and its creation is considered to be in 1996. This name referred to the method of analyzing back links and was created by Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

Over time, however, Brin and Page decided that the name “BackRub” was not entirely appropriate, so they decided to create a new one. To this end, they analyzed which one would be most appropriate, writing various words on the board, based on the association method. In mid-September 1997, when the Google domain was officially registered, the first graphic design of the company’s name was created, which is presented in the image below:

A year later, in 1998, Brin created a completely new logo design, which was used for only a month, and the Gimp graphics program, which is also known today, was used to create it. It was then that the style that is used today began to become visible, although the colors are significantly different. This logo did not stay in use for too long, because a new design was created that same year, which included changing the colors and adding an exclamation mark at the end. Another change was to come a year later.

This year was important because (one could say: “finally”) a logo was created that functioned for more than a year. And even longer than 2, 5, or 10 years. After heated discussions and analyses, designer Ruth Kedar designed a logotype that is among the most famous in the world. This was a time when the aim was to simplify the designed logotypes as much as possible. Ruth Kedar’s first designs included an additional element in the form of a magnifying glass, but this idea was abandoned. The final logo design turned out to be a bull’s eye and functioned for 11 years, until May 5, 2010.

Based on the work created by Ruth Kedar, in the following years only a slight facelift of the logo was carried out. The first changes were made in 2010, significantly reducing shadows, while brightening the colors. Three years later, the use of shadows was completely abandoned, based on the flat design trend.

This is the biggest change since 1999. On the company’s official blog, one could read: “the change in visual identification is related not only to the new form of the company itself, but also to the changes taking place in the digital world.” Logo design and the trends in it are constantly changing, which is why the latest logo uses a sans-serif font, which now looks more modern.