Where Did the At Symbol Come From?

Where Did the At Symbol Come From?

June 1, 2026 · 9 min

About this episode

This episode explores the origins and history of the @ sign, tracing its use back to medieval merchants and a 1970s programmer.

The @ sign goes by many names today, but it's only so commonplace because of medieval merchants and one 1970s programmer. Learn more about the at sign (or arroba, Klammeraffe, strudel, grisehale, or gül) in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://people.howstuffworks.com/arroba.htm See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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