angzarr
{{Short description|Mathematical symbol with obscure meaning}}
{{Primary sources|date=March 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox symbol
| sign = ⍼
| name = Angzarr
| unicode = {{unichar|237C|Right Angle With Downwards Zigzag Arrow}}
}}
The angzarr ({{char|⍼}}) is an obscure typographical symbol representing azimuth, dating back to at least the mid 20th century, which became notorious during the first half of the 2020s for its obscurity and lack of a widely recognised meaning (compare ghost characters).
The name is from an abbreviation of its ISO 9573-13 name, "Angle with Down Zig-zag Arrow",{{cite web |url=https://salsa.debian.org/debian/sgml-data/-/blob/master/sgml/entities/sgml-iso-entities-9573-13.1991/ISOamsa.ent |title=Added Math Symbols: Arrow Relations |work=Techniques for using SGML, Part 13: Public entity sets for mathematics and science |id=ISO 9573-13:1991 |author=ISO |author-link=International Organization for Standardization}} also reflected in its Unicode name, "Right Angle with Downwards Zigzag Arrow". Its HTML entity reference, originally defined in ISO 9573-13 for use in SGML, is {{mono|⍼}}. It has been included in Unicode since version 3.2.
History
The symbol {{char|⍼}} is found in H. Berthold AG symbol catalogs published around 1941 and 1950 where it is described as a mathematical symbol for "{{lang|de|Azimut, Richtungswinkel}}".{{Cite book |author=H. Berthold AG |title=Berthold-Zeichenprobe, Probe Nr. 360 E |date=c. 1950 |url=https://berlin.museum-digital.de/singleimage?imagenr=101440&noiiif=1 |page=7}}{{Cite book |author=H. Berthold AG |title=Berthold-Zeichenprobe, Probe Nr. 360 F |date=c. 1941 |url=https://berlin.museum-digital.de/singleimage?imagenr=105235&noiiif=1 |page=7}}
It is also found in a 1963 Monotype typeset catalog of arrow characters; it does not appear in an earlier 1954 edition of the same catalog.{{cite book |title=Index to Classified Lists of Monotype Special Matrices |section=Special Signs: Arrows and Shafts |publisher=Monotype |edition=1954 |date=December 1954}} Monotype listed the symbol as matrix serial number S9576.{{cite book |title=Index to Classified Lists of Monotype Special Matrices |section=Special Signs: Arrows and Shafts |publisher=Monotype |edition=1963 |date=January 1963}}{{Cite web |last=Chan |first=Jonathan |date=7 August 2024 |title=UPDATE: U+237C ⍼ is (also) S9576 ⍼ |url=https://ionathan.ch/2024/08/07/angzarr |language=en-us}}{{cite book |title=Index to Classified Lists of Monotype Special Matrices |section=Special Signs: Arrows and Shafts |publisher=Monotype |edition=1966 |date=October 1966}} A later 1972 Monotype catalog, for mathematical characters, listed it under another serial number, S16139;{{cite book |title=List of Mathematical Characters |volume=L231 and L231B |publisher=Monotype |date=July 1972 |id=Morison Collection ID 1972.12.177}} the reason for the redundant serial number is unclear. It is unknown why Monotype added the character, or what purpose it was intended to serve,{{cite news |last=List |first=Jenny |date=24 April 2022 |title=Can You Identify This Mystery Unicode Glyph? |url=https://hackaday.com/2022/04/24/can-you-identify-this-mystery-unicode-glyph/ |work=Hackaday |access-date=2023-08-25}}{{Cite web |last=Chan |first=Jonathan |date=6 June 2023 |title=UPDATE: U+237C ⍼ ⍼ |url=https://ionathan.ch//2023/06/06/angzarr |access-date=2024-07-19 |website= |language=en-us}} although much of Monotype's character repertoire for movable type originated from customer requests, including corporate logos.
In 1988, the International Organization for Standardization added the symbol to its Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) definition, apparently pulling it from the Monotype character set.{{cite web | title=ISO/IEC TR 9573-13:1991 |url=https://www.iso.org/standard/17332.html |year=1991 | website=ISO.org |publisher=ISO/IEC |access-date=2024-02-26}} The STIX Fonts project adopted the Angzarr symbol from the ISO's SGML characters.{{cite web |title=Stix Project |url=https://www.ams.org/STIX/}}
In March 2000, the Angzarr symbol reached wide distribution when the Unicode Technical Committee, in collaboration with the STIX project, proposed adding it to ISO/IEC 10646, the ISO standard with which the Unicode Standard is synchronised. The Angzarr was proposed in the ISO working-group document Proposal for Encoding Additional Mathematical Symbols, although no specific purpose is listed for the symbol.{{citation|mode=cs1 |title=Proposal for Encoding Additional Mathematical Symbols in the BMP |id=ISO/IEC JTC1/SC2/WG2 N2191 |author=U.S. National Body |author-link=INCITS |date=14 March 2000 |url=https://www.unicode.org/wg2/docs/n2191.pdf}}
The lack of meaning associated with the Angzarr symbol gained notoriety in 2022 when a blog post was published on its unknown origins.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCoed5Oo_J4 |title=⍼ – Why Nobody Knows What This One Unicode Character Means |date=6 May 2022 |last=Half as Interesting |access-date=2024-07-19 |via=YouTube}}{{cite web|title=U+237C ⍼ Right Angle with Downwards Zigzag Arrow|url=https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31012865|language=en|date=13 April 2022|access-date=2024-08-07|website=Y Combinator}}{{cite web|title=U+237C ⍼ RIGHT ANGLE WITH DOWNWARDS ZIGZAG ARROW|url=https://ionathan.ch/2022/04/09/angzarr.html|first=Jonathan|last=Chan|language=en|date=9 April 2022|access-date=2023-12-27}} The blog was updated in 2023, confirming the appearance of Angzarr in a 1972 Monotype typeset catalogue with a scan of the page,{{cite web|title=Update: U+237C ⍼ &Angzarr;|url=https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36369553|language=en|date=17 June 2023|access-date=2024-08-07|website=Y Combinator}} and in 2024, confirming its appearance in earlier Monotype catalogues.
See also
- List of Unicode characters
- {{anli|Ghost characters}}
- Arrow (symbol)