# naming drugs **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 17, 2003, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016 "2003-07-17T00:32:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![insider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bbe5ce/32.png) [@insider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/insider)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2003, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/1 "2003-07-17T00:32:27Z")
Are there departments in all drug companies whose job it is to name new drugs? How do they come up with these names? Is there a web site that will explain the method that is used to name new new drugs? ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2003, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/2 "2003-07-17T00:37:12Z")
Yes, it’s a complete mystery, [kinda](http://www.salon.com/media/col/shal/1999/11/30/naming/index1.html). ---
**Author:** ![Chief\_Crunch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@Chief\_Crunch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chief_Crunch)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2003, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/3 "2003-07-17T02:03:23Z")
Are you talking about generic or brand names? Generic names usually come from taking parts of the full chemical name. I’d assume marketing comes up with brand names. Some aren’t that hard to figure out. Allopecia is the medical term for balding, hence _Propecia_ as rememdy for baldness. Psych drugs are especially fun. _Aratax_, an antihistamine used for anxiety and tension is derived from the word arataxy, meaning a state of calm. _Halcion_ is an alternate spelling for halcyon. _Paxil_ comes from the Latin word pax, meaning “peace”. _Sinequan_ comes from another Latin phrase sine qua non, “Without which, there is none.” Then we have our good friend, _Valium_ who celebrates his fortieth birthday this month and was derived from the Latin word for stength. _Remeron_=remedy. _Effexor_ from effective. I better stop now. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2003, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/4 "2003-07-17T02:08:37Z")
And premarin comes from “pregnant mare’s urine” from which the hormone is isolated. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2003, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/5 "2003-07-17T06:31:29Z")
Just hope you don’t end up taking [“Zombinol.”](http://www.erowid.org/ask/ask.cgi?ID=3018) ---
**Author:** ![xiaoping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/77aa72/32.png) [@xiaoping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xiaoping)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2003, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/6 "2003-07-18T07:58:29Z")
Generally, brand names are derived from linguistic principles of phonetics and semantics. In essence, phonemes have meanings attached to them (which is the reason The Jabberwocky still creates a vivid image despite being made of mostly nonsense words). These linguistic principles are used to communicate (whether on a conscious or unconscious level), the effectiveness, quickness, or other qualities the producers want you to think of when you hear the name. ---
**Author:** ![eman77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f04885/32.png) [@eman77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eman77)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2003, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/7 "2003-07-18T23:35:03Z")
Isn’t Viagra’s new generic name Mycoxafloppin? or Ibepokin? ---
**Author:** ![Mercury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e95f7d/32.png) [@Mercury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mercury)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2003, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/8 "2003-07-19T00:46:59Z")
The marketing department makes a list of names, and then medical market rsearchers conduct surveys and focus groups to see what is more appealing. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2003, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-drugs/189016/9 "2003-07-19T07:42:40Z")
I don’t know about the generic names, but for the brand names, most companies either turn to their marketing departments or outside consultants for naming ideas. In general, they want a name that evokes images that are positively associated with the effects of the drug (Viagra - life, vigor, growth). Until recently, many companies chose brand names that were similar to the generic names (Dimatapp / Dimatane, for example), but this has been changing. This thinking nowadays is that since anyone will be able to produce the drug once the generic version is available, it’s in the original maker’s best interest to make the brand name (which is the one that everyone will know) as different as possible from the generic name (which is what other companies will have to use).