January 9, 2009
The ampersand: form & function
We all know the ampersand (&) as a sign that stands for “and.” Invented in the 17th century as a space-saver, the symbol is a ligature, or character combining two or more letters, of the Latin conjunction “et,” meaning—you guessed it—“and.” It comes from an old Roman system of shorthand signs authenticated in Pompeiian graffiti.
According to The Online Etymology Dictionary, the word “ampersand” is a contraction of “and per se and,” meaning “‘&’ by itself is ‘and.’” The term came into common English use around 1837.
How do I use the ampersand?
Sparingly. At least according to the AP Stylebook, which says that the ampersand should only be confined to names that formally contain it (e.g. AT&T, Johnson & Johnson).
Interestingly, with the advent of text messaging, the ampersand is making a bit of a comeback (because it’s SO much easier to text one character than three …).
I say, welcome back, &! I’ve always loved this sassy symbol, although I’ve never been able to draw it properly (mine usually ends up looking like a rounded “E” with a line through it). Thankfully, there are many beautiful typographic versions to choose from & enjoy.
Can’t get enough of &? Check out the ampersand blog.
Filed by rebecca at 6:54 pm under Grammar guide
Off topic, but I was horrified to discover that two spaces are no longer required after a period! The Lion pointed this out to me, extremely proud of himself for knowing something about writing that I didn’t. I can’t do it! End of sentence two space new sentence. It’s programmed into me.
Oh, and re-reading my paragraph, if you haven’t already done so, can you do a post on when to use ‘that’ and when to use ‘which’? (two spaces) Thanks ever so much, eh?
I love that sassy ampersand too! It is fun to substitute it on twitter with its swirly lines, the ampersand gets noticed while and is skimmed over. Who knew there was an entire blog devoted to it!
Urban Panther, modern typesetting has eliminated the need for two spaces but it is a hard habit to break. I had to reset my word settings to remind me and it’s still a change I find so hard (seems unnatural) but well worth it because if you ever need to have a book sent for print, those extra spaces cost you time and money.
Panther: Thanks for two great future blog ideas! You’re the best. Stay tuned …
Hi, Karen! Glad to hear that you share my ampersand amour. Thanks, too, for the input on eliminating two spaces after a period. As I told Panther, I’ll definitely blog more on this.
(I bet if you look hard enough, you’ll find entire blogs devoted to almost every topic under the sun!
)
no longer need two spaces after a period??? nonsense! i’m doing it anyway - like panther says “it’s programmed into me”! and i know nothing of grammer <—— see? lol
Very well illustrated, Tess.
Something I’ve been having to do for years now as a copyeditor: search and replace the double spaces.
As well as the ampersands, even in publishers’ names. Academic presses don’t seem to like them. I too think the ampersand lovely, but I rarely use it.
The other thing people can’t seem to let go of is the lack of a serial comma. I can’t use search and replace for that when editing, so I’m an irritated woman when people don’t use them! I ADORE the serial comma. I think I’ve been using it forever.
“That” and “which”: another common one! But I’ll let you take care of that.
Great, Steph, you just had to go and bring up the serial comma!
Talk about a controversial element of grammar! I’ll blog about that in the near future too.
In the meantime, I’ll do my best to explain “that” vs. “which,” but I hope you’ll chime in as well!
When trying to write it, just think of an 8 but think slightly “out of the box” …
Thanks, Russell, that helps! Now that you mention it, the ampersand looks a bit like an 8 with two tails …
I really like your post. Does it copyright protected?
Thanks, Jane. Yes, it is copyright protected. All the best -