Sunday 6 November 2011

Amphorae and Monkey Tails

Capuchin B&W

Image originally uploaded to Flickr by ushtey

Courtesy of Simon Garfield, I was delighted to learn this morning that the symbol @ - which in English is called an "amphora" (as in a jar or unit of measurement) or an "ampersat" but is more often known as the "at sign" - is called "monkey's tail" in German, "pig's tail" in Danish, or "dog's tail" in Russian. In French, it is "snail", and in Czech, "rollmop herring" ...

All far more evocative, no?

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