Project Naming History

Factory Girl

This library was initially released in 2008 with the name "Factory Girl".

We chose the name as a nod in the direction of the Factory method and Object Mother software patterns from the Design Patterns book, and as a reference to the Rolling Stones song of the same name.

Factory Bot

The name "Factory Girl" was confusing to some developers who encountered this library, and offensive or problematic to others. In October 2017 we renamed the library to "Factory Bot".