Symbol

Symbol

A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different concepts and experiences. All communication (and data processing) is achieved through the use of symbols.

Types of Symbols

Symbols take the form of words, sounds, gestures, ideas, or visual images and are used to convey other ideas and beliefs. For example, a red octagon may be a symbol for "STOP". On a map, a blue line might represent a river. Numerals are symbols for numbers. Alphabetic letters may be symbols for sounds. Personal names are symbols representing individuals.

Pictographic Symbols

A pictograph is a symbol representing a concept, object, activity, place or event by illustration. Pictography is a form of writing whereby ideas are transmitted through drawing. It is the basis of cuneiform and hieroglyphs.

Ideographic Symbols

Ideographs are graphical symbols that represent an idea or concept. Unlike pictographs, ideographs do not directly represent the object they signify. Instead, they represent abstract concepts, ideas, and even emotions.

Alphabetic Symbols

An alphabet is a standardized set of basic written symbols or graphemes (called letters) that represent the phonemes of certain spoken languages. Not all languages use alphabets; for example, Inuit languages use syllabics, and Chinese uses logograms.

Symbolism

Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities, by giving them symbolic meanings that are different from their literal sense. Symbolism can take different forms. Generally, it is an object representing another, to give an entirely different meaning that is much deeper and more significant.

See Also

• Icon (computing)
• Semiotics
• Sign (semiotics)
• Symbol (disambiguation)