Teddy bear lovers are known as arctophiles from the Greek word "arcto" meaning bear.

The story of the first Teddy Bear comes from an incident on a bear-hunting trip by President Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt refused to kill an old lassoed bear, calling the behavior "unsportsmanlike." The tale was publicized by political cartoonists and the bear was changed in appearance to a younger, cuter bear.

A short time later, a Brooklyn store owner (Morris Michtom) and his wife Rose displayed two stuffed bears in their store window and said they had received President Roosevelt's written permission to call them "Teddy's bears."

The Michtoms founded the first teddy bear manufacturer in the United States, the Ideal Novelty and Toy Company.