Benz

Benz is a German surname and place name. The most prominent bearer is Karl Benz (1844–1929), an engineer who developed the first practical automobile powered by an internal combustion engine and founded Benz & Cie. in Mannheim in 1883. His wife, Bertha Benz, is celebrated for her 1888 long-distance drive that helped demonstrate the viability of the automobile.

In 1926, Benz & Cie. merged with Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) to form Daimler-Benz AG. The company later evolved into Daimler AG, and in 2022 was renamed Mercedes-Benz Group AG. The Mercedes-Benz brand, combining the legacies of both Daimler and Benz, has become a leading name in luxury automobiles and automotive engineering.

Benz is also the name of a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.