The Etymological Origins of the Ampersand

Patrick Foote of Name Explain spoke about the origin of the ampersand in English and other Latin-based languages.

The Latin word for “and” was simply et. This is still the French word for “and” too. …..Ampersand started life as the e and t of ET being mushed together into one character before becoming the symbol it is known as today. In fact in some fonts the Ampersand does still look like an ENT hybrid.

Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.

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