Top 11 Fascinating Facts About Some Modern Symbols (@, %, !, ...)

The history of the term "percent" originates from the Latin phrase "Pro centum". However, the exact inventor of the % symbol remains unclear. This symbol was first seen in 1685 in the book "Guide to Commercial Arithmetic" by Mathieu de la Porte.

The "&" Symbol was created by Marcus Tullius Cicero, a philosopher, orator, politician, and Roman political theorist. Born into a wealthy family, Cicero is regarded as one of the greatest orators of Rome. He also introduced the main schools of Greek philosophy to the Romans and coined several Latin philosophical terms, such as humanitas, qualitas, quantitas, and essentia, making him also known as a linguist, translator, and philosopher.

The Question Mark "?" was first found in a printed book from the 16th century. However, it wasn’t until the 18th century that it came to be used specifically as the punctuation mark to end a question. When scholars began writing in Latin, they would place the word "questio"—meaning "question"—at the end of each sentence to indicate an inquiry. Over time, to save space, this word was shortened to "qo". However, this created confusion as readers might mistake it for the final letters of a word. To address this, the symbol was simplified: the letter "q" was placed on top of the letter "o". Eventually, the "o" shrank to become the dot, and the "q" lost its full form, resulting in the modern question mark.

The "$" symbol is used to represent various currencies such as the US dollar, Canadian dollar, and the peso. There are several theories about the origin of the "$" symbol, primarily to represent the dollar currency. The dollar originated from the Spanish piece of eight, which is why some people believe the "S" symbol originated from the number "8" seen on these coins. Another widely accepted theory suggests the symbol came from the Spanish abbreviation "PS" (for "peso" or "piastre"), written together. Over time, the "P" turned into a vertical line (|) as the curve of the "P" aligned with the curve of the "S".

This theory is supported by experts who have examined old historical records. The "$" symbol was used even before the Spanish dollar became the official currency in 1785. There was even a time when the symbol was written with two vertical lines instead of one. Many believe this was simply a writing habit, where three strokes were used: one for the "S", one for the vertical line, and one for the curved part of the "P". Some theorists suggest that those writing quickly would often omit the full "P", simply adding another stroke.

Other explanations for the second line suggest that the symbol was derived from the overlapping of two "U" and "S" letters, with the curve of the "U" matching the curve of the "S". Another theory claims the two lines represent the pillars of Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem. However, these interpretations lack concrete evidence, as the writing style existed prior to the formation of the United States (abbreviated as "US") and there are no historical documents linking this to the Spanish dollar.

The equal sign "=" was invented by the English mathematician Robert Recorde in 1557. During that time, mathematicians commonly used two parallel lines to represent balance. However, Recorde's original equal sign was five times longer than the one used today. It took more than a century for his version to be widely adopted. In comparison to the "~" symbol for equivalence introduced by Descartes, the "=" sign took much longer to gain recognition.

The "#" symbol, also known as a hashtag or octothorpe, is commonly used to label content on social media platforms. This symbol, which has its roots in Latin from the 14th century, is also referred to as the pound sign. According to a story about its origin, people began abbreviating the term "weight" or "lb" by adding a horizontal line to the abbreviation. This addition helped distinguish the letter "l" from the number 1 and connected the two letters.

The exclamation mark was originally used as punctuation to signify a "sign of surprise". A well-known theory regarding its Latin origin suggests it symbolized joy (io). The mark was created by stacking the letters "i" and "o" on top of each other. When written vertically, with "i" above "o", it formed the exclamation mark as we know it today. The first appearance of the exclamation mark was in 1553, in the book "The Catechism of Edward VI", published in London that same year.

Many archaeologists believe the origin of the "@" symbol dates back to the Middle Ages, a time when texts and contracts were written in Latin. The Latin word "ad" (similar to the modern English word "at") existed at that time. Monks writing the preposition "ad" would often add a small hooked tail to the letter "d", resembling the number 6 seen in a mirror. This is why the entire word "ad" looks similar to the "@" symbol we use today. In Spanish, Portuguese, and French, the "@" symbol historically represented the abbreviation for the Spanish unit of weight, Arroba (equivalent to 11.52 kg), which was commonly used to weigh cattle or pigs.

In 1971, Raymond Samuel Tomlinson, an American computer programmer who developed the first email system, made a groundbreaking decision to incorporate the "@" symbol onto the keyboard. Since then, the "@" symbol has been placed on the second row from the left. Interestingly, in different countries, the symbol "@" has various meanings. For instance, in South Korea, it symbolizes a snail, in Finland it represents a sleeping cat, in Russia it means a puppy, and in Belgium, it is referred to as a screw.