Android 7.1.1 Nougat rollout begins
Android 7.1.1 Nougat rollout beginsAndroid via Twitter

Google on Thursday pulled the wraps (or is it wrappers?) off the name of its newest iteration of the Android operating system (OS). Google revealed on Twitter that the name of the newest version of the OS will be Android Nougat.

Android is the most popular OS in the world, powering more than 70 percent of smartphones, tablets and other smart devices across the globe. Android operating systems are usually named after sweets, candy and desserts, and alphabetically. So, while Android 4.4 was named "KitKat," Android 5.0-5.1.1 were "Lollipop" and Android 6.0 is "Marshmallow."

A lot of people had tried to lobby for certain names to be assigned to Android OS versions in the past, but in a break from tradition, Google had itself called for such suggestions for the naming of Android N. While "Nutella" seemed to be the most popular, Google on Thursday announced that it had chosen the name "Nougat" for the upcoming Android OS version, which can be numbered 6.1 or 7.0.

While one school of thought now is that Google was avoiding a different brand in naming the new Android OS, it may be noted here that it had named a previous version after the popular chocolate wafer KitKat.

The new OS is expected to be revealed soon, and bring several new features. It is already set to be rolled out to the Nexus 5 smartphone. For example, it is expected to come with the split-screen UI feature. In fact, it's Developer Preview has been out for quite some time now.

And, like any new technology, the upcoming Android OS version has also fallen prey to leaks. The leaks had shown changes in the Settings menu of the OS, but there had been no authentication of these changes at the time. There were also rumours of extra features like a "Do Not Disturb" button.