What does the acronym RAV stand for in Toyota's RAV4?

In Toyota’s RAV4 name, RAV stands for “Recreational Active Vehicle.” The complete name is commonly expanded as “Recreational Active Vehicle with 4-wheel drive,” with the numeral 4 referring to four-wheel drive.

Toyota introduced the RAV4 in 1994 as a compact vehicle intended to blend the everyday manners of a passenger car with the higher seating position and capability associated with an SUV. The original model was offered with four-wheel drive, although later RAV4 versions and certain market configurations also included front-wheel drive. That is why the full expansion describes the vehicle’s concept rather than guaranteeing that every individual RAV4 has four driven wheels.

The name is sometimes reported with slightly different wording, including “Recreational Activity Vehicle,” but “Recreational Active Vehicle” is the standard expansion used for the model. The “4” is not part of the letters RAV; it is an added reference to four-wheel drive. RAV4 is therefore a model name and acronym together, rather than a conventional word with a single literal translation.