Crayola came from the words for “oily chalk"

Crayola came from the words for “oily chalk”

Wax crayons were mostly used for industrial purposes until cousins Edwin Binney and Harold Smith introduced their brightly colored crayons for kids. Edwin’s wife, Alice, made up the name Crayola® by combining “craie” (French for chalk) with “oleaginous” (which means oily). In other words, oily chalk!