Twitter Logo Evolution: How Twitter's Larry the Bird Has Changed Over the Years

Over 15 years old now, Twitter has come a long way since it first launched online. One interesting detail that proves this is the Twitter logo, which evolved from green muck letterings to Larry the Bird and finally Twitter Bird.

By now, many internet fans could instantly recognize the blue bird icon scattered on the internet. However, not everyone might know that Twitter took decades to finalize its logo. Even more interesting is that Twitter almost bears no resemblance to the first proposed design.

Twitter Logo Evolution: A Startup Social Media Platform

Back in 2006, developers were inspired by the photo-sharing platform Flickr, per Creative Bloq. Creators also followed the unspoken rule about five-character length for American SMS short codes and originally named their website "Twttr." The evidence of this history could still be seen on co-founder Jack Dorsey's first-ever tweet about "just setting up my twttr."

On its mock-up ahead of launch, co-founder Noah Glass created a prototype logo for the twttr site. This logo features green lettering of the brand with a few wet droplets. Glass said the logo "inspired youthfulness" and should also emphasize the "old is boring, and nothing is worse than boring."

Arguably, this logo has a lot to grow from. Its letters are too compact, and its coloring is a bit mismatched. Fortunately, developers shared the sentiment and rebranded the platform.

On July 15, 2006, the founders hired graphic designer Linda Gavin to develop a new logo. She only had one day to conceptualize and finish the job. Her final design featured the official name "twitter" in blue letterings, which was a lot more stylized than its predecessor. Glass loved the design and the branding stayed the same for many years.

Twitter Icon: Larry the Bird

As the website grew in popularity, developers also tried hard to maintain its unique identity. They eventually had the idea to make animal logos, which could represent the site itself.

Here's how the Twitter logo bird has evolved over the years:

On June 5, 2012, developers settled with the icon "Larry the Bird," named after Larry Bird from the NBA's Boston Celtics. For reference, the bird icon has an intricate plumage and an extra wing. The icon was stamped alongside Gavin's lettering logo, which was already widely recognized on the internet.

More recently, Twitter decided to redesign its logo for the third time. Developers wanted a munch more simple icon, which was eventually recognized as "Twitter Bird." Designer Douglas Bowman said the image is based on a blue mountain bird with wings made out of three overlapping circles.

After all that development, the results speak for itself. Twitter bird is undoubtedly one of the most recognizable and well-used icons on the internet up to date.