• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Kinney Brothers Publishing

Kinney Brothers Publishing

ESL Teaching & Publishing

  • Kinney Brothers Publishing
  • About
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Audio Stories

ampersand

Fun Facts About English #23 – Ampersand

09/20/2019 by admin

Fun Facts About English 23 Kinney Brothers Publishing

Maybe it would be better to say, “the & glyph was per se the 27th ‘character’ included with the alphabet.”

variations on the ampersand

In Latin, the ampersand represents a cursive combination of the two letters E and T and is pronounced et, or and in English. Around the time when Old English was shedding its runic characters and adopting the Latin alphabet, the & ligature arrived as part of the orthographic package, and to this day continues to be used to represent the word and.

19th Century ABC poster
Early 19th-century alphabet chart.

Why is called an ampersand?

The ampersand was included in schoolbooks as the 27th letter of the English alphabet until the mid 19th century. It was understood not as a vowel or consonant, but as a useful symbol, added to the hind end of the alphabet, and simply known as and. Today, when we recite the ABCs, we often say “X, Y, and Z.” Two centuries ago, children’s chants included and (&) as the last letter. To say “X, Y, Z, and and” was a bit awkward, so the Latin phrase per se – meaning “by or in itself “- was inserted. In recitations, it sounded like this: X, Y, Z, and per se and (&). Eventually, and-per-se-and slurred into ampersand, a mondegreen that we use today.

By the late 1800s, the word ampersand also became a slang term for “rear end, posterior, or the buttocks.” Over time, the & glyph was de-classified within the alphabet, its usage decreased, and today is often frowned upon when used in modern writing.

If you enjoyed this post, you might also be interested in the awesome history of dude or the origins of paddywhack from the song, “This Old Man!” Check out why the word rooster is a preferred euphemism in the United States!

See the previous or next Fun Facts About English

Donald's English Classroom

Visit Donald’s English Classroom where you’ll find a host of downloadable ESL textbooks, flashcards, charts, and games for your youngest English language learners.

Filed Under: Fun Facts About English Tagged With: alphabet, ampersand, Donald's English Classroom, esl, ESL Activities, ESL Flashcards, ESL Games, ESL teaching, esl textbooks, fun facts about english, kinney brothers publishing

Ampersand

09/01/2019 by admin

As part of my blogging activities, I publish a weekly Fun Facts About English series that offers tidbits of trivia about the English language. This has turned out to be quite a pleasurable indulgence in that I get to research somewhat obscure but fascinating facts. I set out with a goal of creating 50 facts for one year’s worth of posts. I’m about half-way through and feel a bit smarter for the effort.

In this post, I’m going to explain the simple factoid below.

Donald's English Classroom

Maybe it would be better to say, “the & glyph was per se the 27th character included with the alphabet.”

History

Donald's English Classroom2

In Latin, the ampersand represents a cursive combination of the two letters E and T and is pronounced et, or and in English. Around the time when Old English was shedding its runic characters and adopting the Latin alphabet, the & ligature arrived as part of the orthographic package, and to this day continues to be used to represent the word and.

Donald's English Classroom3

Why ampersand?

The ampersand was included in schoolbooks as the 27th letter of the English alphabet until the mid 19th century. It was understood not as a vowel or consonant, but as a useful symbol, added to the hind end of the alphabet, and simply known as and. Today, when we recite the ABCs, we often say “X, Y, and Z.” Two centuries ago, children’s chants included and (&) as the last letter. To say “X, Y, Z, and and” was a bit confusing, so the Latin phrase per se – meaning by or in itself – was inserted. In recitations, it sounded like this: X, Y, Z, and per se and (&). Eventually, and-per-se-and slurred into ampersand, a mondegreen that we use today.

By the late 1800s, the word ampersand also became a slang term for “rear end, posterior,” or “the buttocks.” Over time, the & glyph was de-classified within the alphabet, its usage decreased, and today is often frowned upon when used in modern writing.

And now you know.

As always, best of luck in your classes!

Donald Kinney
Kinney Brothers Publishing

Filed Under: Kinney Brothers Publishing Tagged With: ampersand, Donald's English Classroom, ESL Activities, ESL Flash cards, ESL Games, ESL grammar, esl textbooks, ESL Worksheets, fun facts about english, kinney brothers publishing

Primary Sidebar

Search

Kinney Brothers Publishing

Kinney Brothers Publishing Catalogue

Donald’s English Classroom

Donald's English Classroom Catalog

Click to download!

USA Map Puzzle

Sign up and download for free!

Kinney Brothers Publishing 50 Plus Flash Card Activities

Click to see full listings!

Jooble Ad ESL Tutor Jobs

Weekly Fun Facts About English!

Fun Facts About English

Now in Japan!

Independent Publishers International

Copyright © 2023 · Genesis Sample on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in