How does Kia name its vehicles
27 September, 2023
Contrary to popular belief the Kia Rio is not named after the Brazilian city but rather takes inspiration from the Spanish and Portuguese word ‘rio’ which means river and refers to how the styling lines of the cars body flow fluidly.
The origin of the name Pegas, which adorns Kia’s compact sedan is not clear, but we suspect it too hails from Greek mythology and is short for the winged divine stallion Pegasus.
The origins of the name Picanto could relate to the Spanish and Italian words ‘picante’ or ‘piccant’, which means spicy, while other sources claim that it is derived from the French words ‘piquant’ and ‘canto’ meaning spicy song.
The latter might be closest to the truth as the Kia Sonet continues the musical theme with a name derived from the old Occitan phrase sonnet which means little song.
Some of Kia’s model names are more practical in nature. Kia’s large MPV is named the Carnival, which most probably hints at the fact that it is big enough to house a carnival inside.
The Sportage is Kia’s most outdoor focused vehicle and its name is a combination of the word ‘sport’ and the suffix ‘age’, which represents a state or condition of.
While many manufactures have adopted the use of a combination of letters and numbers to name their vehicles, Kia has stuck to the practice of giving their cars iconic names, many of which are centred around a specific theme. In the case of Kia, the names of all their SUVs begin with the letter S and many of their model names also take inspiration from Greek mythology.
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