A Brief History of Some Symbols Familiar to Us All
Dog
This tailed symbol of modernity is actually almost as old as mammoths. In any case, it first appears in medieval Latin manuscripts of the 14th-15th centuries. Monks were stingy about wasting expensive parchment and invented all sorts of abbreviations for commonly used words. For example, for the preposition "ad" (to): they simply merged "a" and "d" - and the @ symbol was born. After that, the symbol also served as an accounting symbol denoting the price of goods, and in 1972, American specialist Ray Tomlinson from BBN Technology invented its use for indicating email addresses. By the way, it is called "dog" only in our language; in different languages, it has names like "little devil," "kitten," "worm," and even "bun."
Cup with a Snake
If you ask ten people where this symbol of pharmacies and medicine in general comes from, nine will say it is a reminder that many useful medicines are made from snake venom. And the tenth will answer correctly - that it is an ancient symbol of the goddess Hygieia, daughter of the god of medicine Asclepius (Esculapius). It is known that Asclepius was accompanied by two wise snakes, which Hygieia fed with milk from a cup.
- Hygieia, did you feed the snakes?
- Yes, daddy. And I cleaned their bowl. In the most Hygieian way!
In the Middle Ages, Hygieia's cup was used as an emblem by pharmacists in the city of Padua in Italy; later, the symbol became widely accepted among medical practitioners. However, in some countries, the caduceus—a staff of the god of commerce Hermes with two entwined snakes—is considered the symbol of medicine.
Smiley
The advertising symbol, created in the 1960s by artist Harvey Ball for a client, was hijacked by hippies. For them, it became a secret sign indicating that drugs could be bought nearby. When the police also learned to understand the meaning of Mr. Smiley, the smiley face was drawn everywhere in defiance of the police: on poles, backpacks, cars, and trees. To make them search harder. Thus, the smiley became a symbol of counterculture in general. After migrating to the Internet, it lost its criminal connotation and simply came to represent a smile, most often not supported by any chemical means.
Yin and Yang
The Chinese had a dualistic view of the world (not to be confused with a nonchalant attitude, although there is something in common).
The white yang represented fire, day, air, and the masculine principle; the dark yin represented water, night, earth, and the feminine principle. It was believed that the entire world consists of these two substances, which have no clear boundaries. In every yin, there is always a portion of yang, and vice versa.
Venus
The astrological symbol of Venus and, accordingly, of women. It does not depict a victim of the terrible disease "water on the brain" (although it looks similar), but the essential attribute of every woman - a mirror. Don't go where such a sign hangs: recently, astrology-obsessed designers have taken to decorating the doors of women's restrooms with it.
Two Venuses
If there are two Venuses, then it is even less necessary to peek through the door with such a symbol. For about twenty years now, it has denoted a shelter for lesbians, and you are most likely not going to be allowed into a club with such a sign.
Exclamation Mark
When an author wanted to express joy and delight in a Latin text, he wrote the word "io," which means something like "hooray." Joyful Roman writers expressed their enthusiasm regularly, so the medieval frugal scribes, whom we have already mentioned, learned to squeeze "o" under "I" and thus save a whole quarter of an inch of parchment. Eventually, "o" shrank down to a dot.
Question Mark
The same story as with the exclamation mark. The question in Latin was conveyed by the word "Quaestio," written at the end of a sentence. Scribes shortened it to "Qo" and also wrote one letter under the other. As a result, they gave birth to this.
Om Sign
Now it will get complicated. Very Eastern. So, Om (pronounced "omm") is, according to Hindu teaching, the unnameable name of the creator, the initial vibration of the universe. Now the riddle: how does the unnameable name of the creator sound if it is called Om? The correct answer is to ask the Indians; this is beyond European consciousness. At least without a decade of meditating somewhere on a Goan beach.
Aggressive Anarchy
This symbol denotes that true anarchy is not in communal benevolent existence, but in the complete freedom of each individual to create whatever they want. First of all, to burn, break, and engage in other destruction, disregarding any laws and norms, as is proper for a truly free individual. Such signs are most often seen in Germany, where the societies of anarchist extremists originally emerged.
Double Axe
This symbol can often be found on the walls of houses in Europe. It is drawn by supporters of the militant matriarchy, participants in numerous women's organizations proclaiming the superiority of women over men in everything. Experienced European men try to avoid clubs, cafes, and apartments with such signs on their doors: the risk is too great that the militant Amazons will capture you and torture you with stories about how all men are bastards.
Mars
The astrological symbol of the planet Mars has come to represent men in general. There are no hints at male genitalia here; any coincidences can be considered accidental. It is simply a planet-ball with a spear - the symbol of the warlike god. However, the spear is also a symbol of male genitalia. But, on the other hand, is there anything in the world that is not a symbol of genitalia?
Ouroboros
Look at how eagerly this snake is eating its tail. Not because it is tasty and nutritious, but because if the reptile stops doing this, time will stop, and the universe will cease to exist, frozen in the great "Nowhere and Never." The Ouroboros symbolizes the infinite repetition of time. It was invented by the ancient Greeks. For a time, mathematicians even wanted to use it as a sign denoting infinity, but then decided that drawing a horizontal eight would be easier.
All-Seeing Eye
An ancient Egyptian symbol indicating that the god sees all, although he himself, invisible, is hidden in a pyramid. This Eastern symbol seemed very mysterious and exotic; for a long time, it was used as one of the main emblems by the Freemasons. Now, the all-seeing eye is most often seen on dollar bills.
Plus
Like its brother minus, it was born in 1490 - that is when the book "Quick and Beautiful Calculation" by Czech mathematician Jan Vidman was published, in which he proposed using these two symbols for addition and subtraction. Until then, mathematicians each tried to explain in their own way what to do with numbers in their formulas. The multiplication and division signs appeared even later, and there is still complete confusion with them.
Division is depicted with two dots, a dot-line-dot, and simply a slanted line. As for the multiplication symbol, it involves single dots, slanted crosses, and mathematicians do not use it at all.
Ankh
The Egyptian symbol of eternal life. No deceased person was sent to the afterlife without this symbol - whether it was made of pure gold or hastily drawn on the forehead with soot.
Simple Swastika
A spinning wheel with curved blades that creates a shimmering circle in motion gave ancient Indians the idea that this is how the sun is arranged. In India, you will see swastikas everywhere, but primarily in temples, on trays with incense, on wedding attire, and on car windshields. Indians believe that the swastika protects against premature death, brings health, and long life.
Inverted Swastika
Hitler's PR team stole this solar sign from Indian symbolism to emphasize their ancient Aryan (directly from India) heritage. Most likely, the swastika ended up inverted because those who drew it did not accurately remember which way the tails bend. (Later, when the mistake was discovered, they had to come up with versions about "new reinterpretation.") Thus, the cheerful solar sign turned into one of the most repugnant symbols in human history: inverted, the swastika went from "life" to "death." Today, in most European countries, the use of the swastika anywhere, except in books and films about World War II, is strictly prohibited.
Heart
It is well known that the heart symbol was used in love messages by the Greeks and Romans. However, less known is that they did not mean the heart by this symbol. In fact, the heart was named by Christians in the medieval era. The Greeks and Romans, well acquainted with anatomy, knew very well that the heart does not look like that at all. Therefore, many researchers believe that the popular symbol depicted the head of an erect penis - an object that undoubtedly expresses a deep affection for the one to whom it is directed. Rumor has it that this fact is carefully suppressed today to avoid disrupting sales volumes of heart symbolism on Valentine's Day.
Peace Symbol
It was invented in 1958 by British designer Gerald Holtom - and everyone loved the design. Each person saw in it whatever they wanted: a Christian cross, a dove of peace, the silhouette of a nuclear missile. Although in reality, Holtom simply combined two letter signals from semaphore code - N and D, the abbreviation for "nuclear disarmament."
Anarchy
A simple symbol indicating that anarchy should rule the world, states need to be abolished, megacities destroyed, everyone should move to rural areas and live there in small communes according to natural laws and common sense. In fact, in its original form, the idea of anarchy is one of the most tedious and orderly social structures that can be imagined. No wars, politics, or television - everyone works the fields, harvests, and dances in circles in the evenings.
Pentagram
Various ancient peoples, from the Jews to the Sumerians, claim authorship of this sign, but in any case, the first documented evidence of the use of the pentagram belongs to the Pythagoreans of Greece.
They considered the pentagram a symbol of the five elements (fire, earth, water, air, and ether, enclosed in a circle representing the universe). Arabs called the pentagram the "Seal of David" and believed it to be a powerful protection against evil spells. Therefore, before summoning evil spirits by mixing various magical substances like sulfur and nitrate in a small jug, alchemists would always draw pentagrams on the floor and doors. Unfortunately, pentagrams did not always work as intended, and evil spirits would occasionally emerge from the jugs in fire and flame, taking unfortunate experimenters straight to the underworld.
Bluetooth
At first glance, there seems to be no connection between this wireless technology and a blue tooth (which is what "Bluetooth" literally translates to from English). But believe it or not, there actually is a connection.
This technology was invented back in 1994 by the Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson. According to Viking history, the symbol is two runes combined together. The rune H and the rune B, together they form the well-known symbol.
International Flag of Planet Earth
During each space mission today, various national flags are used depending on which country is funding it. This is all good, but astronauts, regardless of their country of origin, "represent" the planet as a whole, not the state that provided funding for the flight.
For this reason, the flag of planet Earth was developed. It consists of seven white interwoven rings on a blue background. The rings symbolize all life on our planet.
However, the symbol itself is much older than the flag and is better known as the "Seed of Life." It is considered part of "Sacred Geometry." This term is used to denote universal geometric patterns often found in nature. The Seed of Life bears a striking resemblance to the cellular structure during embryonic development.
Moreover, the Seed of Life, like the Great Flower of Life, has been found in many places around the world. The oldest find was discovered in the Temple of Osiris in Abydos, Egypt, dating back about 5000-6000 years.
Such a "design" has also been used in Buddhist temples in China and Japan, in modern Turkey, in India, throughout Europe, in Iraq, and many other places. The Seed of Life also plays an important role in various religions. For example, in ancient Slavic religions, the symbol of the Seed of Life represented the sun.
Sickle and Hammer
The Soviet "sickle and hammer" is possibly one of the most recognizable political symbols, ranking alongside the Nazi swastika and the American stars and stripes in terms of recognition.
And although their meaning is likely straightforward, it may carry hidden messages. The hammer can represent the proletariat (blue-collar workers), while the sickle represents peasants. Together, they symbolize the unity and strength of the Soviet state. However, creating the emblem was not as simple as it seems.
The situation with the hammer was easier, as it was traditionally associated with workers throughout Europe. The second part of the symbol was more complicated; several variations were considered: the hammer was depicted with an anvil, plow, sword, sickle, and wrench.
The designer, Yevgeny Kamzolkin, is also intriguing. He was not a communist even in spirit but was a deeply religious person. He was a member of the Leonardo da Vinci Society and, as an artist, was very knowledgeable about symbolism.
Perhaps Kamzolkin used the sickle and hammer to convey a completely different message, even if no one understood it. For example, in Hindu and Chinese culture, the hammer was often associated with the triumph of evil over good. The sickle was associated with death in various religions.
Before the scythe appeared, in medieval Europe, Death was depicted with a sickle; Hindu religions also depicted the god of death with a sickle in his left hand. What exactly Kamzolkin meant when designing the emblem is unknown.
All of this is speculation, and no one asked the designer, who passed away in 1957. The key point in this case is the interpretation of the symbol because depending on the context, such emblems can mean two completely different things.
Power Symbol
This symbol can be found on almost all devices, but few people know about its origin.
In the 1940s, engineers used a binary system to denote different switches, where one meant "on" and zero meant "off." Later, this transformed into the symbol we all know today - a circle and a line (zero and one).
Wheel
Early images were created in 2000 BC. The symbol appears in Asia, the Middle East, and Egypt. The wheel was an attribute of the sun gods and embodied the cyclicity of life, rebirth, and renewal. In Buddhism and Hinduism, the wheel symbolizes the cycle of Samsara, the flow of change, fate, and time.
Later, the concept of the "wheel of fortune" emerged - a symbol of the variability of fate. The spokes of the wheel of fortune carried good and bad luck, endlessly alternating with each other.
Rose of Winds
The first mention of the symbol dates back to the year 1300 AD.
The Rose of Winds was a symbol of the guiding star and a talisman for sailors.
In the 18th-20th centuries, tattoos with this talisman were popular: it was believed that it would help sailors on their journeys and in returning home. The Rose of Winds was also depicted on maps, symbolizing the cardinal directions.
Crescent Moon
The symbol has existed since 3500 BC. It is found in Egypt, Greece, India, Byzantium, and Sumer. The crescent moon embodies rebirth and immortality.
It was revered by Christians as a sign of the Virgin Mary, in Asia as a sign of cosmic forces. In Hinduism, it symbolizes control over the mind.
The crescent moon was a symbol of the Sasanian Empire in Persia and was placed on crowns. In 651, after the Arab conquest, the crescent moon became a symbol of power in Western Asia. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the crescent moon finally became associated with Islam.