People are only just realising where Ray-Ban got its name from after 90 years

People are only just realising where Ray-Ban got its name from after 90 years Created by Bausch & Lomb, Ray-Ban sunglasses have been around since the mid-1930s, but it seems many people are only just realising the meaning of the brand's name Ray-Ban is a luxury Italian brand of sunglasses that has been around since the 1930s. Known best for it's Wayfarer and Aviator lines, a pair of new shades can set UK customers back anywhere between £130 and £830 from the company's own website. Whilst the brand has become a household name over the years, have you ever wondered where it comes from? One person recently did, whose admission was made via the X account, Fesshole. "I only realised why Ray-Bans are called ray bans," the post read. "I'm 40." And it seems they weren't the only one. In fact, the meaning behind the name is actually quite obvious. The name traces back to the 'Golden Age of Flight' of the 1920s and 1930s - a time in which military aircraft technology was progressing rapidly. In America by this point, US Army Air Corps pilots were flying higher than they previously had before - and they soon discovered the sun's glare at such high altitude posed a significant problem, resulting in severe headaches, sickness and blind spots. It prompted the army's Colonel John A. Macready to work with medical optics manufacturer Bausch & Lomb to find a solution. He began by requesting a specialised pair of aviation glasses that could block out the glare without distorting pilots' vision. By 1936, Bausch & Lomb had created a prototype featuring green-tinted lenses set in a lightweight plastic frame, that they referred to as the 'Anti-Glare' model. A year later, meanwhile, the company tweaked the design by adopting a leaner metal frame. After brainstorming a potentially punchier, more descriptive branding identity, Bausch & Lomb opted for 'Ray-Ban', which they subsequently patented and registered. Like 'Anti-Glare', 'Ray-Ban' is somewhat self-explanatory - they simply 'ban' the sun's rays from affecting the eyes. As for the Aviator's iconic teardrop lens shape, this was specifically engineered to follow the natural downward gaze of pilots scanning their cockpit instrument panels. Writing in response, one X user confessed: "Well, I was today years old when I learned that. I always treated Ray-Ban as just a brand name and never once connected it to literally banning rays." A second person quipped: "40?! Mate, I’m 46 and my brain just did a full system reboot. Ray-BAN the rays… we’ve all been living in plain sight this whole time." A third shared: "38 and it just hit me after reading your post. Never even thought about it before." While a fourth exclaimed: "You're not alone. I guarantee half the people reading this just realised it too."