Indians are campaigning to get the next Android version named after this local sweet
Last week, Google announced that it was crowdsourcing suggestions for the name of its next-generation Android N. Taking inspiration, numerous Indians, many of them from the southern state of Kerala, are campaigning to get the OS named after a local sweet, Neyyappam.
Each of the last 11 versions of Android OS, from Cupcake to Marshmallow, follow an alphabetical order, and are named after desserts. During his India visit last year, Google CEO Sundar Pichai had joked that he would suggest holding an online poll to name the next version of the OS, so that Indians could vote for a local dessert.
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Android is the most popular operating system in India, and Neyyppam, a deep-fried dessert made of rice and jaggery, has emerged as an unlikely front-runner in the culturally and culinarily diverse country. While Neyyappam's name may be a tongue twister for most employees of Google, its origins lie in Kerala, neighbour to Pichai's home state Tamil Nadu.
The #AndroidNeyyappam campaign was started by three techies from Bengaluru, who have launched a website and created a logo with the dessert. It has quickly gathered steam, with numerous Indians from Kerala campaigning for Android Neyyappam on social media. There are also several Twitter handles to promote the name, with the official handle of the Kerala tourism board also urging people to vote for it.
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While Neyyapam, along with nectarines, nachos and navy bean, shows up as one of the shortlisted names on the Google website, the ultimate decision lies with the company.
Google is accepting submissions for Android N on its micro-site until June 9.
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Sonam Joshi was Mashable's principal correspondent in India. She has previously worked for The Times of India group and Time Out Delhi, and written for The Caravan, Mint Lounge and Yahoo Originals.
