[comp.dcom.telecom] ISO's Meaning

jwb@monu6.cc.monash.edu.au (Jim Breen) (11/15/90)

In article <14658@accuvax.nwu.edu>, oberman@rogue.llnl.gov writes:

> Reasonably accurate except that the name of the body is "The
> Organization for International Standardization", at least in English.
> The name "ISO" was selected because it "looks right" in a lot of
> languages without being an actual acronym for the name of the body in
> any language, thus avoiding offending either anglophiles or
> francophiles.

Reasonably accurate, except that it's "International Organization for
Standardization". I'm quoting from my copy of ISO 8802-2, which on my
desk right in front of me. The name appears about five times on the
first three pages.


 Jim Breen ($B?@Ip(J) (jwb@monu6.cc.monash.edu.au) 
Dept of Robotics & Digital Technology. Monash University
    PO Box 197 Caulfield East VIC 3145 Australia
      (ph) +61 3 573 2552 (fax) +61 3 573 2745

msb@sq.com (Mark Brader) (11/21/90)

> The name "ISO" was selected because it "looks right" in a lot of
> languages without being an actual acronym for the name of the body in
> any language ...

And, in addition, the Greek-derived prefix "iso-", as in "isothermal",
means "same", which befits a standards body.  (Thanks to Anders
Berglund for pointing this out to me.)


Mark Brader, SoftQuad Inc., Toronto, utzoo!sq!msb, msb@sq.com