When does it feel more natural to have articles in names?

Question

In my observations, names usually don't have articles like the, a, an. For example: Stack Exchange (not The Stack Exchange); Facebook, (not The Facebook).
However:

There are cases when the name really have the "the", but people drop it. For example, people refers to the newspaper The New York Times as New York Times
There are cases when there is no "the" in the names, but people add it. For example, people refers to the newspaper Daily Star as The Daily Star

I wonder if there is any rule for this? I suppose that with time, the article will gradually be dropped. So if it isn't, then probably there is a stronger reason that it sticks to the name. What would that reason be?
Also, what about names that consist only regular words, like house, book, etc? Since it can be confused with the actual object, would it's more natural to have "the" in the name? Would they say:
- I pick a book from Book
or
- ­I pick a book from The Book
?
Meta: Is asking about a name of a product (not naming it) on-topic?

Ricky · Answer

There is no rule. Tradition, the sound, history, and some other factors are what matters.
Consider:
Bath, a city in England, was actually the Bath up until the Nineteenth Century, when the article was dropped.
Facebook was initially the Facebook.
There's some logic behind the New York borough called The Bronx: it was named after the family of Jonas Bronck, i.e. the Broncks. However, no one is quite sure why the Hague is called the Hague, and there are also the Vatican and the Stonehenge.
.
You need to use the definite article with these:
the Royal Albert Hall, the John Hancock Center, the Kennedy Center of the Performing Arts
But not with these:
Carnegie Hall, City Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Epcot Center, Canterbury Cathedral, Westminster Abbey.
Also, compare:
London Bridge, yes, but: the Brooklyn Bridge.

Stephen James · Answer

"I work for BBC. I got my job there after I left Post Office." Not ok.
"I work for the ITV. I got my job there after I left the DHL." Not ok.
It has to be the BBC and the Post Office. It can never be the ITV and the DHL. Nobody knows why.
The possessive is also tricky. You can shop at Tesco's although the shop is named 'Tesco'. You could never shop at Ikea's.  Again, nobody knows why, or, if they do, they aren't telling.

When does it feel more natural to have articles in names?

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