Yeah, that name thing... Companies are paid a lot of money to name and package products these days, in order to make names and packages that are pleasing and don't have negative connotations.
Chevrolet discontinued the Chevy Nova in South and Central America - in Spanish, "no va" means "doesn't go".
When the SciFi Channel changed its name to "SyFy" in an effort to make it more texting-friendly, they failed to consult the Urban Dictionary - it's a slang term for syphilis.
PepsiCo, while expanding into China, translated this term into Mandarin: "Pepsi brings you back to life." Their translator fumbled on that one and ended up with THIS phrase in their ads: “Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave.”
Never package items for retail sale in Japan or to Japanese people in sets of four, such as a sake service set or kitchen tableware. The word "shi" means both "four" and "death" in Japanese, though with different kanji, making it an unlucky number - even when going out socially, the Japanese will try to avoid groups of four, favoring a higher or lower number of people. In fact, many older Japanese buildings are missing a 4th floor in much the same way as many older, taller American buildings are often missing a 13th floor.
The halls of advertising and branding firms are filled with similar such disasters all over the world...
