【精英翻譯】的部落格

Symbols Speaking Louder Than Words  符號趣談

—Helen Yeh

精英翻譯社轉自http://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0058/317812/web/

There are many special symbols that are used in place of words. Even though you see them every day, you might not know where they come from. Let's take a look at the origins and meanings of some of the more popular symbols.

有很多特殊符號被用來取代文字。即便你每天都看到它們，你可能不知道它們從哪裡來的。一起來看一些比較普遍的符號的起源和意義吧。

The "At" Sign: @

「小老鼠」符號 @

One popular symbol is the "at" sign. Its first known use was in a letter that was written by a 16th-century Italian merchant. He used the sign to represent units of wine and other goods. This symbol continued to play an important role in business, but it fell out of fashion in the 19th century. In the 1970s, computer engineer Ray Tomlinson chose to use it for e-mail addresses.

一個普遍的符號是at（小老鼠）。它為人所知最早的使用是在一封十六世紀義大利商人所寫的信裡。當時他用這個符號來代表酒和其他商品的單位。這個符號在商業中持續扮演重要的角色，但十九世紀時就不再流行。一九七○年代，電腦工程師雷．湯姆林森選用它來作為電子郵件地址。

The Ampersand: &

表示「和」的符號&

Another common symbol is the ampersand. It can be traced back to the first century. It came from the word et, the Latin term for "and." The letters e and t were often written together as one character to make writing easier. Over time, the character gained the familiar shape that we know today.

另一個常見的符號是& （表示「和」）。它可以追溯到西元一世紀。它來自et這個字，表示「和」的拉丁字詞。e和t這兩個字母常寫在一起變成一個字好方便書寫。漸漸地，這個字符變成我們今天所熟悉的形狀。