Why are transistors called "Q"?

[James Fogg]

On Fri, 2005-02-25 at 20:52 -0500, David V. Corbin wrote:
> >>> Here's a question that came up at the office when a 
> >>> colleague looked at a PCB and asked "why are the 
> >>> transistors labelled with Q?"  Well, I suggested it might 
> >>> be to avoid a clash with "T" for transformer.
> >>> Or maybe "Q" represents a generic semiconductor, such as a 
> >>> FET, SCR or triac.  Or is there some other reason?
> >>> 
> 
> It is in one of the following three ANSI standards:
> 
>  Y1.1-1972
>  Y10.5-1968
>  Y10.19-1969

Also, isn't the gain of a transistor called "Q"? Or some other
characteristic?