The Reason Starbucks' Logo Is A Siren

As internationally well-known as Starbucks is, the company has plenty of mysteries and fun facts for customers to dive into. From the many ordering hacks to understanding all of the different types of iced coffee available at Starbucks, the company has no shortage of interesting facets. Even the company's humble beginnings are full of interesting tidbits.

The only thing more famous than Starbucks' products is its logo, which is recognized around the world. Nearly everyone can recognize the green siren, but few know why the logo is a siren in the first place. The truth is that the siren was chosen specifically to match the nautical-inspired name of the company.

The Starbucks name actually comes from the book "Moby Dick." Due to the story's strong ties to the sea, the company felt compelled to get a logo that was equally inspired by the sea. Illustrations of sirens from old marine books served as the visual inspiration and the Starbucks siren was born.

Beyond the nautical theme behind the company name and logo, the siren was chosen to match Starbucks' city of origin: Seattle. The city is located directly on the water and has an extensive seafaring history due to its large fish markets. These factors combined helped cement the siren as the company's official logo.

Although the logo has remained a siren since the company's inception, the precise design of the siren has been subject to change several times. The initial logo was brown and featured the siren in her entirety. In 1987, the color was changed to green and the shape of the siren was made more symmetrical, as well as the art style being somewhat modernized.

The siren was given a makeover once again in 1992. Instead of featuring a full-body siren, the logo changed to a close-up shot, eliminating showing the lower half of the body. The final changes to the logo came in 2011, which saw the removal of all words from the logo and minor adjustments to the siren's face and hair.