Jan. 28 is International Lego Day, a day to celebrate the little plastic bricks that have captured the hearts and imaginations of millions. Whether you build Lego Harry Potter, Lego Star Wars, Lego Technic, Lego Architecture, or any other kind of Lego, it’s time to break out the bricks and build.
Where did Lego come from?
According to Lego.com , the story of Lego began in 1932, when Danish carpenter Ole Kirk Christiansen started making wooden toys, including cars and airplanes. A few years later, in 1935, he began to focus more exclusively on toy making. Christiansen allegedly held a competition to name his new company. The winning name (which Christiansen came up himself) was Lego. “The name ‘LEGO’ is an abbreviation of the two Danish words “leg godt”, meaning “play well,” according to Lego.
Why is International Lego Day on Jan. 28?
The holiday is celebrated on Jan. 28 because, according to the Library of Congress, that was the day the original patent was filed for Lego. The patent was filed by Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, managing director of Lego from 1957 through 1973 and founder Ole Kirk Christiansen’s son. Per the Library of Congress, “Thanks to the patent, Lego Group —the Lego block manufacturer—became one of the largest toy manufacturers in the world.”