In 1986, Apple introduced the Apple IIgs. However, the original name for the machine was Cortland. But where did that name come from, and why was it changed to the more familiar "Apple Iigs?"
Introduction
This newest, and last, member of the Apple II family was a 16-bit machine and included many improvements over the nearly 10-year-old platform. The two most prominent features were the high-resolution color graphics mode and sample-based sound chip. That is what the 'G' and 'S' in its name stand for!
(
: Wikipedia)
At its introduction, Apple released a 16-bit version of ProDOS, the primary operating system of Apple IIs of the time. Later they introduced GS/OS (screenshots), a more advanced operating system with a GUI-based interface. Disks appeared as icons on a desktop with a common menu bar at the top of the screen. An "Apple" menu in the left-hand corner contained some utilities in its drop-down. Does that sound familiar? Two years before Apple introduced the IIgs, it presented the Macintosh computer with a TV commercial that very few people ever saw. (kidding) Its GUI-based operating system shared elements also found in GS/OS. (Both of those borrowed heavily from the ill-fated Lisa product.) The primary difference is that the Apple IIgs could display color! (It would be almost seven years before the Macintosh got color.) Not only that, but thanks to ProDOS compatibility, it could launch ProDOS applications for either the 8-bit Apple IIe or 16-bit Apple IIgs. (And despite what many believe, the MEGA-II chip does not play as big of a backward-compatibility role as you might think. But that's a story for another post.)
Much has been written and said about the internal war between the IIgs and Macintosh. I can only add my opinion: Apple should have given the IIgs more of a chance. It is a damn fine 16-bit computer. The world would not move into the 32-bit era for a few more years. The IIgs expertly bridged the gap between the legacy 8-bit user base with a step into the 16-bit generation all while Macintosh was, frankly, failing to establish itself. The contention between the two machines may have been the genesis for its original name and the reason for its ultimate designation.
But first, we need to talk about apples as a fruit.
Cortland (Apples)
As mentioned, the original name for the IIgs was Cortland. Initially, I thought this was the code name for the IIgs project. However, I have found much documentation that seemed to be in a final-draft state, which still referred to the Cortland name. Those same documents never mention "IIgs." But, that does not address the question: where did the name Corland even come from?
Cortland is an apple varietal named after a city in New York state. In 1898, scientists at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station (NYSAES) began breeding cultivars to improve the newly popularized McIntosh. That simple fact alone would probably cause you to see the connection between Cortland, the IIgs, and the Apple computer company. However, there's a fascinating subtext to Cortland's genetic structure.
Ben Davis (Apples)
Most Americans in the 19th century would picture a Ben Davis when they picture an apple fruit. (Red apple in the header image.) They were extremely robust and could withstand several days of travel from an orchard to a city. Not only that, but the apples dropped late in the season, helping to boost a farmer's revenue. Wikipedia says people called it a "mortgage lifter" for these reasons.
In other words, Ben Davis had an established place in the market, was well-liked by its customers, and was a cash crop to its producers. Do those three qualities sound like anything else?
Was it named on purpose?
The Cortland apple crossbreeds the Ben Davis and the McIntosh! It combines the well-established cash crop with features people wanted from the newer fruit. I cannot think of a more fitting name for a computer that had one foot in the past and another in the future.
Unfortunately, I have found no official discussions on naming "Cortland." (If you have links to documents or memos, please let me know in the comments!) However, you cannot simply ignore the remarkable parallel between the fruit and the computer! It is such a clever name and sounds very much like something Apple in the late 1980s would do.
Then, why was it changed? Well, again, I have no documentation to establish an official reason. Based on my experience with product management, it was probably correct to market the computer as the "Apple IIgs." Just like the Macintosh, the name itself is meaningless. So you have to educate the customer base on what the term means before they start to understand the product. Such a narrative worked well on the Macintosh because Apple wanted to establish it as something very different from other computers.
Given the IIg's solid backward compatibility, non-computer savvy teachers and parents would probably recognize "IIgs" is similar to the well-established Apple IIe. However, if you told them it was a "Cortland," you would have to wait 36 years to send them to this post to explain what the name means. 
Regardless of why the name changed, I am happy to discover the original name, Cortland has roots beyond "yet another apple type."