Open main menu
Home
Random
Recent changes
Special pages
Community portal
Preferences
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Incubator escapee wiki
Search
User menu
Talk
Dark mode
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Editing
Lego
(section)
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
== History == {{Main|History of Lego|Timeline of Lego}} [[File:Bri-Plax Interlocking Building Cubes - Hilary Fisher Page 1939.jpg|thumb|Hilary Fisher Page's ''Interlocking Building Cubes'' by [[Kiddicraft]], 1939]] The Lego Group began in the workshop of [[Ole Kirk Christiansen]] (1891β1958), a carpenter from [[Billund, Denmark|Billund]], Denmark, who began making wooden toys in 1932.<ref>{{Harvard citation no brackets|Wiencek|1987|p=16}}</ref><ref name="LEGObook">{{harvnb|Lipkowitz|2012}}</ref> In 1934, his company came to be called "Lego", derived from the [[Danish language|Danish]] phrase {{lang|da|leg godt}} {{IPA|da|lΙjΛ ΛkΚt|}},<ref>{{Cite web |title=leg β Den Danske Ordbog |url=https://ordnet.dk/ddo/ordbog?query=leg |access-date=20 May 2021 |website=ordnet.dk |archive-date=14 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201014174213/https://ordnet.dk/ddo/ordbog?query=leg |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=godt β Den Danske Ordbog |url=https://ordnet.dk/ddo/ordbog?query=godt |access-date=20 May 2021 |website=ordnet.dk |archive-date=18 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201118154335/https://ordnet.dk/ddo/ordbog?query=godt |url-status=live}}</ref> which means "play well".<ref name="lego-group-history">{{cite web |title=The Lego Group History |url=https://www.lego.com/en-us/aboutus/lego-group/the-lego-group-history/ |website=lego.com |access-date=13 May 2020 |archive-date=19 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519092137/https://www.lego.com/en-us/aboutus/lego-group/the-lego-group-history/ |url-status=live}}</ref> In 1947, Lego expanded to begin producing plastic toys.<ref name="Wiencek45-46">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Wiencek|1987|pp=45β46}}</ref> In 1949 the business began producing, among other new products, an early version of the now familiar interlocking bricks, calling them "Automatic Binding Bricks". These bricks were based on the [[Kiddicraft]] Self-Locking Bricks, invented by [[Hilary Page]] in 1939 and patented in the United Kingdom in 1940<ref>{{cite web |url=http://v3.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/biblio?CC=GB&NR=529580&KC=&FT=E |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120728104212/http://v3.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/biblio?CC=GB&NR=529580&KC=&FT=E |url-status=dead |archive-date=28 July 2012 |title=Improvements in toy building blocks, patent GB529580 of 25 November 1940 by Harry Fisher Page of Kiddicraft |publisher=espacenet.com |date=17 July 2010 |access-date=17 July 2010}}</ref> before being displayed at the 1947 [[Earls Court Exhibition Centre|Earl's Court]] Toy Fair.<ref>Page's twin daughters play with a set of Kiddicraft K 263 Building Blocks {{cite web |title=Twins and Skyscrapers |url=http://brickfetish.com/kiddicraft/twins_1947.html |website=brickfetish.com |accessdate=24 November 2023}}</ref> Lego had received a sample of the Kiddicraft bricks from the supplier of an [[Injection moulding|injection-molding]] machine that it purchased.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Glancey |first=Jonathan |date=28 July 2008 |title=Lego: a toy of gentle genius |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/jul/28/children.design |access-date=29 June 2023 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Andersen |first=Jens |year=2021 |title=The LEGO Story |publisher=Mariner Books |page=79 |isbn=978-0-06-325802-0 |quote=A Mr. Printz, the managing director of Hoffmann & Co., and the person who sold Ole Kirk the Windsor machine, came to visit Billund. He'd just returned from England, bringing with him a box filled with small, bricklike plastic blocks in various colors, which he'd seen at the British Industries Fair in London. Perhaps, he suggested, LEGO could make something similar once the Windsor molding machine arrived in Denmark and was set up in Billund. Ole Kirk was spellbound by the English bricks, which were hollow and featured studs on the top.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Andersen |first=Jens |year=2021 |title=The LEGO Story |publisher=Mariner Books |page=83 |isbn=978-0-06-325802-0 |quote=The origin of LEGO's very first plastic bricks isn't in dispute. Godtfred explained on several occasions that they were inspired by the English firm Kiddicraft, founded by Hilary Fisher Page in the 1930s.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Andersen |first=Jens |year=2021 |title=The LEGO Story |publisher=Mariner Books |pages=241β242 |isbn=978-0-06-325802-0 |quote=The case was also heard in Hong Kong in 1986, and that was the first time Godtfred told the detailed story of LEGO's development of Hilary F. Page's "Self-Locking Building Bricks" under oath, admitting that they'd copied the English bricks "very carefully," as was noted in the court transcript. It was a difficult moment for Godtfred. While in strictly legal terms he'd never acted illegally in relation to Page and Kiddicraft, he'd nonetheless always felt twinges of guilt.}}</ref> The bricks, originally manufactured from [[cellulose acetate]],<ref name="Pickering15">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Pickering|1999|p=15}}</ref> were a development of the traditional stackable wooden blocks of the time.<ref name="Wiencek45-46" /> [[File:Lego in 1957.jpg|thumb|left|Boy from the UK playing with Lego in 1957. First sold in Denmark, the company expanded its sales across Europe in the 1950s, before expanding outside the continent from the 1960s.]] The Lego Group's [[motto]], "only the best is good enough"<ref>{{Cite web |title=How we keep your data safe β Customer Service β LEGO.com MY |url=https://www.lego.com/en-my/service/data/ |access-date=25 September 2020 |website=www.lego.com |archive-date=22 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922184209/https://www.lego.com/en-my/service/data/ |url-status=live}}</ref> ({{Langx|da|det bedste er ikke for godt}}, literally "the best isn't excessively good") was created in 1936.<ref name="LEGObook" /> Christiansen created the motto, still used today, to encourage his employees never to skimp on quality, a value he believed in strongly.<ref name="LEGObook" /> By 1951, plastic toys accounted for half of the company's output, even though the Danish trade magazine ''LegetΓΈjs-Tidende'' ("Toy Times"), visiting the Lego factory in Billund in the early 1950s, wrote that plastic would never be able to replace traditional wooden toys.<ref name="Wiencek46-52">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Wiencek|1987|pp=46β52}}</ref> Although a common sentiment, Lego toys seem to have become a significant exception to the dislike of plastic in children's toys, due in part to the high standards set by Ole Kirk.<ref>Lauwaert, M. (2008). "Playing outside the box β on LEGO toys and the changing world of construction play". ''History & Technology'', 24(3), 221β237.</ref> By 1954, Christiansen's son, [[Godtfred Kirk Christiansen|Godtfred]], had become the junior [[Chief executive officer|managing director]] of the Lego Group.<ref name="Wiencek46-52" /> It was his conversation with an overseas buyer that led to the idea of a toy system. Godtfred saw the immense potential in Lego bricks to become a system for creative play, but the bricks still had some problems from a technical standpoint: Their locking ability was still limited, and they were not yet versatile.<ref name="Lego History-About Us" /> In 1958, the modern brick design was developed; ABS subsequently replaced cellulose acetate as the manufacturing material five years later.<ref name="Pickering15" /><ref name="Wiencek68-72">{{Harvard citation no brackets|Wiencek|1987|pp=68β72}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Lipkowitz |first=Daniel |date=2009 |title=The LEGO Book - Volume 1 |edition=1st |location=London |publisher=Dorling Kindersley |page=21 |isbn=9781405341691}}</ref> A patent application for the modern Lego brick design was filed in Denmark on 28 January 1958 and in various other countries in the subsequent few years.<ref name="Time50Years">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1707379,00.html |title=Lego Celebrates 50 Years of Building |magazine=[[TIME]] |date=28 January 2008 |access-date=28 January 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080131130615/http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1707379,00.html |archive-date=31 January 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2018/01/60-years-of-lego-building-blocks-and-danish-patent-law/ |date=29 January 2018 |first=Jenny |last=Gesley |title=60 Years of Lego Building Blocks and Danish Patent Law |publisher=[[Library of Congress]] |access-date=28 January 2021 |archive-date=28 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128162810/https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2018/01/60-years-of-lego-building-blocks-and-danish-patent-law/ |url-status=live}}</ref> [[File:Lego Color Bricks.jpg|thumb|Lego bricks]] [[File:2 duplo lego bricks.jpg|thumb|Two Lego Duplo bricks with a standard brick for comparison]] The Lego Group's [[Lego Duplo|Duplo]] product line was introduced in 1969 and is a range of blocks whose lengths measure twice the width, height, and depth of standard Lego blocks and are aimed towards younger children.<ref name="Wiencek46-52" /><ref>{{cite web |title=About Duplo |url=http://www.lego.com/en-us/duplo/about/baby-in-bloom |website=Lego |access-date=6 September 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906083454/http://www.lego.com/en-us/duplo/about/baby-in-bloom |archive-date=6 September 2015}}</ref> In 1978, Lego produced the first minifigures, which have since become a staple in most sets.<ref>{{cite web |title=The history of the Lego minifigure |url=http://www.toys2remember.com/2010/11/lego-minifigure-history.html |website=Toys to Remember |access-date=6 September 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906053416/http://www.toys2remember.com/2010/11/lego-minifigure-history.html |archive-date=6 September 2015}}</ref> In 1997, more than five million Lego pieces were swept into the sea when a wave hit a cargo ship off the coast of [[Cornwall]], England. Pieces have washed up over the ensuing decades, attracting attention from news outlets and social media.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Haji |first=Zainab |date=2024-08-10 |title='Catch of the week': fisher lands Lego shark lost at sea for 27 years |url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/article/2024/aug/10/catch-of-the-week-fisherman-lands-lego-shark-lost-at-sea-for-27-years |access-date=2024-08-10 |work=[[The Guardian]] |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> In May 2011, [[Space Shuttle Endeavour]] mission [[STS-134]] brought 13 Lego kits to the [[International Space Station]], where astronauts built models to see how they would react in [[microgravity]], as a part of the Lego Bricks in Space program.<ref name="Banks">{{cite news |url=http://archive.wired.com/geekdad/2011/04/space-shuttle-endeavor-launches-tomorrow-with-a-special-payload/ |title=Space Shuttle Endeavour Launches Tomorrow With a Special Payload |last=Banks |first=Dave |date=28 April 2011 |work=[[Wired News]] |access-date=2 May 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140726103430/http://archive.wired.com/geekdad/2011/04/space-shuttle-endeavor-launches-tomorrow-with-a-special-payload/ |archive-date=26 July 2014}}</ref><ref name="Eaton">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.fastcompany.com/1750642/space-shuttle-endeavour-the-spare-parts-spaceship |title=Space Shuttle Endeavour: Made Of Spare Parts |last=Eaton |first=Kit |date=29 April 2011 |magazine=Fast Company |access-date=2 May 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110503012602/http://www.fastcompany.com/1750642/space-shuttle-endeavour-the-spare-parts-spaceship |archive-date=3 May 2011}}</ref> In May 2013, the largest model ever created, made of over 5 million bricks, was displayed in New York City; a one-to-one scale model of a ''[[Star Wars]]'' [[X-wing fighter]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://gizmodo.com/this-incredible-full-scale-lego-x-wing-is-the-largest-m-509484787 |title=This Incredible Full Scale Lego X-Wing Is the Largest Model in History |date=23 May 2013 |access-date=24 May 2013 |first=Jesus |last=Diaz |website=[[Gizmodo]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603033254/http://gizmodo.com/this-incredible-full-scale-lego-x-wing-is-the-largest-m-509484787 |archive-date=3 June 2013}}</ref> Other record breakers include a {{convert|34|m|adj=on||abbr=}} tower<ref>{{cite web |title=Delaware Students Complete World's Tallest LEGO Tower |url=https://www.inhabitat.com/delaware-high-school-students-complete-worlds-tallest-lego-tower |website=Inhabitat |access-date=29 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130822201613/http://www.inhabitat.com/delaware-high-school-students-complete-worlds-tallest-lego-tower/ |archive-date=22 August 2013 |date=24 August 2013}}</ref> and a {{convert|4|km|mi|abbr=on|adj=on}} railway.<ref>{{cite web |title=The World's Longest LEGO Railway Stretches Nearly 2.5 Miles Long |url=https://inhabitat.com/the-worlds-longest-lego-railway-is-awarded-the-guinness-world-record/ |website=Inhabitat |access-date=29 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140330004934/http://inhabitat.com/the-worlds-longest-lego-railway-is-awarded-the-guinness-world-record/ |archive-date=30 March 2014 |date=19 May 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.worldrecordacademy.com/biggest/longest_Lego_Railway_Denmark_smash_Guinness_world_record_213394.html |title=Longest Lego Railway |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130810213423/http://www.worldrecordacademy.com/biggest/longest_Lego_Railway_Denmark_smash_Guinness_world_record_213394.html |archive-date=10 August 2013 |date=16 July 2013 |access-date=29 March 2014}}</ref> In February 2015, marketing consulting company Brand Finance ranked Lego as the "world's most powerful brand", overtaking [[Ferrari]].<ref name="Dill">{{Citation |last=Dill |first=Kathryn |date=19 February 2015 |title=Lego Tops Global Ranking of the Most Powerful Brands in 2015 |work=[[Forbes]] |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kathryndill/2015/02/19/lego-tops-global-ranking-of-the-most-powerful-brands-in-2015/ |access-date=20 February 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150220084454/http://www.forbes.com/sites/kathryndill/2015/02/19/lego-tops-global-ranking-of-the-most-powerful-brands-in-2015/ |archive-date=20 February 2015}}</ref><ref name="Brand Finance">{{Cite web |date=17 February 2015 |title=Lego Overtakes Ferrari as the World's Most Powerful Brand |publisher=Brand Finance |url=http://brandfinance.com/press-releases/lego-overtakes-ferrari-as-the-worlds-most-powerful-brand/ |access-date=20 February 2015 |archive-date=13 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151213094125/http://brandfinance.com/press-releases/lego-overtakes-ferrari-as-the-worlds-most-powerful-brand/ |url-status=live}}</ref> While Lego has generally been considered a children's toy, there have also been adult fans of the toys. In 2020, Lego introduced sets aged at 18+, generally some of their more expensive and difficult-to-assemble sets based on real world or fictional objects, such as the [[Concorde]] or [[Rivendell]]. The timing of these sets favorably aligned with the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], with many adults purchasing these sets to work on during various lockdown periods. Popularity within adults was further pushed by the release of ''[[The Lego Movie]]'' and the reality series ''[[Lego Masters]]''. By 2024, nearly 15% of the sets released in the U.S. were aimed at adult builders.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wsj.com/business/retail/850-millennium-falcons-and-680-titanics-grown-ups-are-now-a-gold-mine-for-lego-73f265cf?mod=hp_lista_pos2 |title=$850 Millennium Falcons and $680 Titanics: Grown-Ups Are Now a Gold Mine for Lego |first=Trevor |last=Moss |date=April 13, 2024 |accessdate=April 13, 2024 |work=[[Wall Street Journal]]}}</ref> In May 2025 Lego announced that it was planning to move its London headquarters from [[Farringdon, London|Farringdon]] to 76 [[South Bank]], in 2027.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Koopman |first=Saskia |date=2025-05-01 |title=Lego to relocate 1,500 staff to new landmark headquarters |url=https://www.cityam.com/lego-to-relocate-1500-staff-to-new-landmark-headquarters/ |access-date=2025-05-02 |website=City AM |language=en-GB}}</ref>
Edit summary
(Briefly describe your changes)
By publishing changes, you agree to the
Terms of Use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)