Ampersand

This:

known as
an ampersand. It’s derived from a handwritten mixture of the letters E and T, as in et, the Latin word for “and”. You might need already recognized that. However whether or not you probably did otherwise you didn’t, the actual fact is that the swirly factor you
often name an “and signal” really has a reputation. And if it has a reputation, then there’s
a cause for it having that identify. Which is the place we are available in.

Up
till as just lately because the mid 1900s, it was customary follow when reciting
the alphabet to make use of the Latin phrase per se (actually “by itself”) to distinguish between particular person
letters of the alphabet—like A, I, and O—and single-character homographic phrases—like
a, I and O.

So the letter A could be learn as “A per se A”,
to make sure it was distinguished from the indefinite article a. The letter I, equally, could be “I per se I” to distinguish it from the pronoun I. And the letter O could be “O per se O” to distinguish it from the interjection
O!

However
as a result of it was simply one other character representing simply one other unit of the English language, the image & was additionally as soon as thought-about a letter
of the alphabet, and was included after Z in twenty-seventh place. And so to
differentiate & from the conjunction and,
the alphabet as soon as ended with a closing “X, Y, Z, and & per se &”.

Eyetests have been rather a lot simpler within the Twenties

Someday
within the early nineteenth century, this “and per se and” ran collectively right into a
single phrase, and, ultimately, the identify ampersand
was born.

& that’s that.