The use of the '@' symbol is familiar, especially in electronic mail (e-mail). In typography, the character is called the "At sign".
However, in some countries, the name can vary. In Italy, for example, the '@' symbol is called the slug symbol, and it's different again in the Netherlands, call it a symbol of "monkey tail".
As the name suggests in typography, the symbol is also read with an "at". For example, the e-mail address: xxx@gmail.com, is pronounced as xxx(at)gmail(dot)com.
The use of the '@' sign varies. In accounting and commercial invoicing, the at-sign means "assessment". While in the field of digital communication, including chatting, the '@' sign is often used for "mention" or "calling".
The '@' symbol is now widely used as a prefix for user account names on social media (handles), such as "@kompascom". So, what does the '@' symbol mean, and what is its history?
The history of the '@' symbol from time to time
Using the '@' symbol was found in several locations worldwide. As reported by Today I Found Out, the '@' symbol was first found in Bulgarian writing from the Manasses Chronicle in the 12th century, in 1345 to be exact.
The writing tells a brief history of the world until the end of the 11th century. The '@' symbol is used for "amen" in it.
In addition, '@' is also found in Spanish notebooks from 1448. The record describes the shipment of grain from the Kingdom of Castile to the Aragon region.
Other histories account for the '@' symbol being used in the commercial setting of Italian trade. As found in a letter written by the Florentine merchant Francesco Lapi on May 4, 1536.
In the letter, he uses the '@' symbol to denote a unit of measure named "amphora". Amphora is defined as a clay jar filled with wine and equivalent to 1/13 of a barrel.
There is other evidence of the '@' symbol from Spain, which describes it as a symbol for the Arroba unit. The term Arroba itself is taken from Arabic, which means ar-rub, a quarter.
Meanwhile, according to the Oxford dictionary, the symbol '@' was invented by religious leaders who used it as a substitute for the Latin "ad", which means at, towards, by and around.
The idea is linked to the theory of a simple way to combine two letters into one (the letters 'a' and 'd'). The goal is none other than to write faster and save time.
The '@' symbol first appears in e-mail.
The history of this symbol does have various versions and different uses. But in 1971, a computer scientist from the United States named Ray Tomlinson implemented the '@' character in his version.
Tomlinson created a small program called SNDMSG which stands for Send Message (now known as e-mail).
This program is designed to send messages from one user to another on the same computer.
He also developed SNDMSG on the first ARPANET network by combining the SNDMSG and CPYNET programs. In developing it, according to him, an e-mail naming system must have two elements, namely a computer name and a user name.
He finally chose the '@' symbol. The reason is, according to Tomlinson, the '@' character is the only symbol in his model 33 teletype.
A teletype or also known as a teleprinter, is a communication device used to send typed messages through various communication channels.
Tomlinson's consideration of embedding the symbol made it easier for the computer to read the recipient or sender of the e-mail.
Incidentally, at that time, there was still no suitable symbol to simplify the e-mail naming system so that it was universally accepted on all computers.
Until then, the '@' symbol was increasingly used and developed into a unique character for sending messages, including e-mail addresses.
Currently, the use of the '@' symbol is fixated on e-mail and developed in the use of social media such as Twitter and Instagram; the '@' symbol is defined to refer to the user's account name or handle.