Jesus called twelve disciples. Mark 3:13-14 read, “And He went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. And He appointed twelve (whom He also named apostles) to be with Him and to send them out to preach.”

The Twelve Apostles, a collection of limestone stacks off the shore of Port Campbell National Park in Australia, were named primarily for tourism and marketing purposes. Originally, the rock formations were known by the much less majestic name "The Sow and Piglets," where Mutton Bird Island was the "sow" and the smaller surrounding stacks were the "piglets." In the 1920s, local authorities decided to rename them the "Twelve Apostles" to create a more majestic and recognizable brand for the growing Great Ocean Road tourism industry. Interestingly, at the time of the naming, there were only nine stacks in the main cluster, not twelve. Due to the relentless erosion from the Southern Ocean, the stacks continue to change; a 50-meter-tall stack collapsed in 2005, and another fell in 2009. As of 2026, only seven stacks remain standing in the primary viewing area, but the iconic name persists as a testament to the power of branding in global travel.