In recent years the name of a dog in Downton Abbey, a region in Australia, a song on Bob Dylan’s album Desire and a bridge near Oxford have gone from innocuous to unfortunate.
Lord Grantham’s dog Isis was presumably named after the ancient Egyptian god. The canine suddenly died in the British television series last year to be replaced by puppy Tiaa and now a UK refurbishment contractor ISIS Restoration has decided to rebrand.
The best known use of Isis stands for Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, one of the names for jihadist militant group Islamic State which was behind the November 13th terrorist attacks in Paris.
The Kent-based company has changed its name to Bourne Construction and Refurbishment from December, acccording to Construction News.
“Due to the recent events in Paris and many other countries around the world, we as a company believe it is now time to change our trading name and branding,” the company said in a letter.
“All of our branding including work wear, name boards and signage will be rebranded, all staff email addresses will be changed and a separate email will be forwarded once this is finalised,” it said in a letter seen by Construction News.
Not all are taking the same approach. Last month residents of Queensland’s Isis district vowed not to change the area’s name and reiterated that there were no links between the fertile region known for its macadamia and avocado crops and the terrorist organisation of the same name.