Neom is Saudi Arabia’s multi-billion dollar megaproject which is a special economic zone set to be constructed at the northern tip of the Red Sea.
It was announced in 2017 by the Kingdom’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud as an ambitious national tourism strategy.
However, have you ever wondered how experts behind the project came up with its unique name?
Well, if you’re curious the answer’s quite simple and it also holds a connection to the Kingdom’s crown prince.
According to Arabian Business, “Neom”, the distinctive name of the Kingom’s megaproject is a portmanteau which was coined by combining the Ancient Greek prefix neo meaning “new”.
The “M”, which completes the project’s name comes from the first letter of the Arabic word ‘mustaqbal’, meaning future.
“M” is also the first letter of the name of the Kingdom’s crown prince.
Finally, the name “NEOM” was agreed upon unanimously by the board after testing over 2,000 names proposed by the consulting team.
The list was eventually reduced to 150 names and then to five, but none of them were chosen.
The board had brainstormed words that represented the project sectors and their basic pillars, leading to the final name.
Saudi Arabia’s multi-billion dollar megaproject, Neom, is all set to open its doors of its first destination, Sindalah, to the public this year. Meanwhile, it has recently secured $2.7 billion new funding for its linear city, “The Line.”
