How did Alibaba get its name?

Why did founder and executive chairman Jack Ma choose to call his company Alibaba?

The name came from a brainstorm by the company's founder and CEO, Jack Ma.

Though the origin has a colorful story, the company offers the short version on its website, explaining it's a "well-known" name and easily pronounced. In the story "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves," from the collection "One Thousand and One Nights," a chamber of treasures is opened with the words, "Open sesame." Ma was born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. His parents were traditional musician-storytellers..A former English teacher, Ma knew the story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, from a collection of Arabic stories called One Thousand and One Nights.

"E-commerce is global so we needed a name that was globally recognized," the website states. "Alibaba brings to mind 'open sesame,' representing that our platforms open a doorway to fortune for small businesses."

But back in 2006, the former English teacher explained in detail how he chose the name in a San Francisco coffee shop.

According to an interview he gave in 2006 with CNN's Talk Asia program, Ma was in a San Francisco coffee shop when he came up with the name. He asked the waitress whether it was something she was familiar with.

"I said, 'What do you know about Alibaba?' and she said 'Open Sesame.' And I said, 'Yes, this is the name!'" he told the interviewer.

In the story, the phrase "Open Sesame" magically opens the secret door to a treasure trove.

 

Next Ma went into the street and started asking random passers by if they knew the name Alibaba. Everyone, no matter where they were from, was familiar with it. People from India, people from Germany, people from Tokyo and China... They all knew about Alibaba."

"Alibaba -- open sesame. Alibaba -- 40 thieves," Ma said. "Alibaba is not a thief. Alibaba is a kind, smart business person, and he helped the village. So...easy to spell, and global know. Alibaba opens sesame for small- to medium-sized companies.

In China the company is called 阿里巴巴, pronounced A li ba ba, a direct transliteration of the Arabic name.

The idea behind the name is that consumers can find treasures on the site.

Ma had originally thought of calling it Ali Mama, as Baba is a Chinese word for father, but decided against it.