Ferruccio Lamborghini was born on 28 April 1916, which makes him a Taurean. Since its foundation in 1963, the names chosen by his company for the majority of its models have been related to bullfighting.
The Miura (1966–73) was named after Eduardo Miura, a famous breeder of fighting bulls. In his book Death in the Afternoon (a treatise on bullfighting), Ernest Hemingway wrote: "There are certain strains of bull with a marked ability to learn from what goes on in the arena ... faster than the actual fight progresses which makes it more difficult from one minute to the next to control them ... these bulls are raised by Don Eduardo Miura's sons from old fighting stock ...
The Islero (1968–9) was named for the bull that killed the famous bullfighter Manuel Laureano Rodríguez Sánchez (known as Manolete) in 1947.
Espada (1968–78) is the Spanish word for a sword, sometimes used to refer to the bullfighter himself.
Jarama (1970–6) is a historic bullfighting region of Spain, and also a historic motor racing track.
The Urraco (1973–9) and the Jalpa (1981–8) were named after breeds of bull.
The Diablo (1990–2001) was named for a legendary bull, famous for fighting an epic battle against El Chicorro in Madrid in 1869.
Murciélago (2001–10) was the legendary bull whose life was spared by El Lagartijo for his performance in 1879.
The Gallardo (2003–13) was named for one of the five ancestral castes of the Spanish fighting bull breed.
Reventón (2007–9) was the bull that defeated the young Mexican bullfighter Félix Guzmán in 1943.
The Estoque concept of 2008 was named for the estoc, the sword traditionally used by matadors during bullfights.
Lamborghini's two current models (2017) are the Aventador (introduced in 2011) and the Huaracan (introduced in 2014). These were named after famous bulls. Aventador fought particularly valiantly in the bull ring of Zaragoza in 1993; Huaracán (named in turn after the Mayan god of wind, storm and fire) fought in 1879 and was known for its courage.
© Haydn Thompson 2017