Swoosh

From Solepedia.com - Online Sneaker Encyclopedia

A swoosh is a graphical figure reminiscent of a caligraphical flick of the pen, also described as a "crescent swish". It is best known for its use in the Nike logo.

The Nike swoosh logo is a graphic design created by Caroline Davidson in 1971. It represents the wing of the Greek Goddess Nike. Caroline Davidson was a student at Portland State University in advertising. She met Phil Knight while he was teaching accounting classes and she started doing some freelance work his company.[1] Mr. Knight was interested in finding a logo that he could put on the side of a shoe. Caroline gave Mr. Knight the swoosh drawing and he gave her $35.00. In 1972, the first shoes with the swoosh were introduced, and Nike has been using the logo ever since.

In the late 1990s, it grew to a cliché in the realm of logos.