This morning I was talking with my sweet, missionary mother, and she asked me about my meetings yesterday with Red Hat.
Mom: Where did they get the name "Red Hat", anyway?
Me, not quite sure of the right answer: Well, I think one of the early founders, Bob Young, had a red fedora or something.
Mom: Was he a pimp?
I guess she wouldn't have found the answer on Red Hat's official history, nor would the Wikipedia entry for Red Hat help her. This list of the etymologies of corporate names, however, would have helped her.
Unfortunately, the name comes from company founder Marc Ewing's red hat worn during lacrosse games, and not a side business of pimping. Now she'll never pay for RHEL.
Discuss: The lurid, untold history of Red Hat
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