The Lego company was established by Ole Kirk Christiansen, a carpenter from Billund, Denmark. He began making wooden toys in 1932, but his company was not as successful during the Great Depression. Christiansen changed the name of his company “Lego,” a contraction of the Danish words leg godt, meaning “play well.”
In 1934, Lego adopted plastic bricks for production and the first sets were marketed. The company also started an entirely new division named Dakta that would focus on educational products.
In the last quarter of the 20th century, Lego continued to expand its product range and marketing efforts. In 1971, Lego introduced dollhouses, furniture pieces, and in 1974 first Lego human figures. Later, these minifigures developed into the style that we use today. Lego also began to make more sophisticated building sets targeted for older children. They would eventually grow into Lego Technic.
Lego launched the World Cup Lego Building Contest in 1987 to allow children to take part. The event was held in Billund and 38 kids from 17 different nations participated. The same year, Lego also began to develop dedicated theme sets that were seen as systems within a system, including Lego Space, Lego Castle, Lego Town (later renamed Lego City) and Lego FabuLand. Lego also departed from its usual smiley faces for the https://lego-x.com/2021/12/07/the-best-places-to-buy-lego/ first time in 1988 when it introduced the introduction of a line of pirate Lego figures that had a variety of expressions and facial features.
In 1999, Lego changed the way it licensed characters from franchises. It began to offer Lego versions of popular characters such as Spider-Man and Star Wars. Harry Potter, Avatar: The Last Airbender and many more. Critics and fans reacted in different ways to this decision.