What two-word name did McDonald's give its famous yellow M-shaped symbol in 1962?

McDonald's gave its famous yellow M-shaped symbol the name Golden Arches in 1962.

The symbol developed from architectural arches used on McDonald's restaurants. The original buildings featured two separate arches, one at each side of the roofline; later design work combined their visual impression into the familiar letter-like emblem.

The Golden Arches became more than a building feature. They evolved into a corporate logo and eventually became a shorthand for McDonald's itself. The name refers to the arches' golden color and their architectural origin, not to a separate menu item or advertising slogan.

The 1962 branding milestone is often confused with the later logo refinements. The arches existed before that year, but the recognizable corporate symbol and its broad use were formalized during McDonald's early expansion.