According to series creator Ed Annunziata, he originally planned to name Ecco the Dolphin after the dolphin constellation Delphinus (a design that appears on Ecco's head in the form of scars). Sega of America's global marketing director Al Nilsen instead suggested the name Botticelli, referencing the Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli, in an attempt to imitate how the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were named after famed Italian artists. Annunziata sensed this was a bad idea and turned to Sega of America's director of product development Clyde Grossman, who suggested "Echo" based on echolocation. Annunziata then replaced the "h" in the name with a "c" to form the final name; he explained that it was a reference to the Italian word "Ecco", which can be loosely translated to English as "I see" (i.e. understanding something). It is also thought to be a reference to the works of John C. Lilly, a neuroscientist known for his controversial attempts to communicate with dolphins, who believed that he had been contacted by an alien organization called the "Earth Coincidence Control Office", or "E.C.C.O." While this connection has not been directly confirmed, Annunziata once stated in a series of tweets about Ecco the Dolphin trivia that he "never took LSD, but did read a lot from John Lilly".