View source for Ampersand

{{Short description|Symbol representing the word "and" (&)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2016}}
{{Redirect|&|other uses|& (disambiguation)}}
{{Redirect|And symbol|the logic symbol|Logical conjunction}}
{{about|the symbol|other uses|Ampersand (disambiguation)}}
{{technical reasons|&#|SGML/HTML/XML usage|Numeric character reference|prefix=yes}}
{{Contains special characters}}
	
{{Infobox grapheme
| letter = &
| imagesize = 200px
| imagealt = Variations of the Ampersand in different fonts.
| script = [[Latin script]]
| type = [[Logographic]]
| typedesc = <br>and [[Ideographic]]
| language = [[Latin language]]
| phonemes = 
| unicode = U+0026
| alphanumber = (27)
| number = 
| fam1 = 𐌄𐌕
| fam2 = [[E]][[T]]
| fam3 = et
| fam4 = [[Image:Trebuchet MS ampersand.svg|class=skin-invert-image|20px|ɛt (Some modern fonts, like [[Trebuchet MS]], employ ampersand characters that reveal its origin)]]
| fam5 = [[Image:etlig.svg|class=skin-invert-image|20px|eτ]]
| fam6 = [[File:& (italic, 1735).svg|class=skin-invert-image|20px|& (italic, 1735)]]
| fam7 = [[File:Et-handwriting.svg|class=skin-invert-image|20px|& in modern handwriting]]
| usageperiod = {{Circa|100 CE}} to present
| children = {{bull}}⅋
| sisters = [[Greek alphabet|Greek letter]] {{char|ϗ}} (ligature of {{char|κ}}, {{char|α}} and {{char|ι}} similarly to &)<br />[[Armenian alphabet|Armenian letter]] {{char|և}} (ligature of {{char|ե}} and {{char|ւ}}, pronounced {{ipa|/jɛv/}}; եւ is the [[Armenian language|Armenian]] word for "and");<br />[[Sindhi alphabet|Sindhi letter]],{{nbsp}}{{char|۽}}
| equivalents = [[plus and minus signs|plus sign]],{{nbsp}}{{char|+}}
| associates = &C (etC)
| direction = Left-to-right
| image = Et_sign.svg
}}

The '''ampersand''', also known as the '''and sign''', is the [[logogram]] {{char|'''&'''}}, representing the [[grammatical conjunction|conjunction]] "and". It originated as a [[typographic ligature|ligature]] of the letters of the word {{lang|la|et}} ([[Latin]] for "and").<ref>[http://www.merriam-webster.com/video/index.php?id=0043-ampersand "The Ampersand & More"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150704212251/http://www.merriam-webster.com/video/index.php?id=0043-ampersand |date=4 July 2015 }} with Kory Stamper, part of the "Ask the Editor" video series at Merriam-Webster.com</ref>

==Etymology==
{{blockquote|text=''Ampersand'': the sign {{char|&}} the name being a [[Corruption (linguistics)|corruption]] of 'and {{lang|la|[[per se (terminology)|per se]]}} = and'; i.e. '{{char|&}} by itself = and'. The sign derives from the scribes' [[ligature (typography)|ligature]] for the {{langx|la|et}} in certain italic versions, the letters ''e'' and ''t'' are clearly distinguishable. |source = Geoffrey Glaister, ''Glossary of the Book''<ref name="adobe">{{cite book |last=Glaister|first=Geoffrey Ashall|author-link=Geoffrey Glaister|title=Glossary of the Book|url=https://archive.org/details/glosaryofbook0000unse|url-access=registration|year=1960|publisher=[[Allen & Unwin|George Allen & Unwin]]|location=London}} cited in {{cite web |last=Caflisch |first=Max |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130113202304/https://www.adobe.com/type/topics/theampersand.html |archive-date=13 January 2013 |url=https://www.adobe.com/type/topics/theampersand.html|title=The ampersand|work=Adobe Fonts|publisher=[[Adobe Systems]]|access-date=23 December 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>}} <!-- THIS IS A DIRECT QUOTE AND MUST NOT BE CHANGED IN ANY WAY -->

Traditionally in English, when spelling aloud, any letter that could also be used as a word in itself ("A", "I", and "[[Vocative case#English|O]]") was referred to by the [[Latin]] expression {{lang|la|[[:wikt:per se|per se]]}} ('by itself'), as in "''per se'' A" or "A ''per se'' A".<ref name=aglossary>{{cite book |last=Nares |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Nares |title=A Glossary |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n9bfivi9ti4C&pg=PA1 |access-date=1 May 2013 |year=2010 |orig-year=first published 1822 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=9781108035996 |page=1 |archive-date=3 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140103092709/http://books.google.com/books?id=n9bfivi9ti4C&pg=PA1 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=worddetective>{{cite web|url=http://www.word-detective.com/052003.html#ampersand |title=The ampersand |work=word-detective |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080508140613/http://www.word-detective.com/052003.html |archive-date=8 May 2008 }}</ref><ref name=merriam-webster>{{cite web|url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/video/0043-ampersand.htm|title=The Ampersand & More|work=merriam-webster|access-date=14 November 2012|archive-date=28 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140328143150/http://www.merriam-webster.com/video/0043-ampersand.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> The character &, when used by itself as opposed to more extended forms such as ''&c.'', was similarly referred to as "and ''per se'' and".<ref>{{cite journal|last=Ainger|first=Alfred|date=2 December 1871|title=Amperzand|journal=[[Notes and Queries]]|series=4|volume=8|page=468}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Harper|first=Douglas R.|date=20 September 2022|title=ampersand|work=[[Online Etymology Dictionary]]|url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/ampersand|accessdate=5 August 2023}}</ref> This last phrase was routinely slurred to "ampersand", and the term had entered common English usage by 1837.<ref name=worddetective/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://hotword.dictionary.com/ampersand/|title=What character was removed from the alphabet but is still used every day?|date=2 September 2011|work=The Hot Word|publisher=Dictionary.com|access-date=4 September 2011|archive-date=27 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927003303/http://hotword.dictionary.com/ampersand/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{OED|ampersand}} {{subscription required}}</ref>

It has been [[false etymology|falsely claimed]] that [[André-Marie Ampère]] used the symbol in his widely read publications and that people began calling the new shape "Ampère's and".<ref>For examples of this misunderstanding, see [[Jessie Bedford]], Elizabeth Godfrey: [https://books.google.com/books?id=AL0KAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA22 English Children in the Olden Time, page 22] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170220010619/https://books.google.com/books?id=AL0KAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA22 |date=20 February 2017 }}. Methuen & co, 1907, p. 22; Harry Alfred Long: [https://books.google.com/books?id=AWgSAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA98 Personal and Family Names, page 98] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170219220525/https://books.google.com/books?id=AWgSAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA98 |date=19 February 2017 }}. Hamilton, Adams & co, 1883.</ref>

==History==
<div class='skin-invert-image'>{{gallery
|File:Historical ampersand evolution.svg
   |Evolution of the ampersand.<ref name="Tschichold" /> Figures 1 to 6
|File:Ampersand.svg 
   |The modern ampersand is virtually identical to that of the [[Carolingian minuscule]]. The italic ampersand, to the right, is originally a later {{nobreak|''et''-ligature}}
|File:etlig.svg
   |''Et'' ligature in [[Insular script]]
|File:Epsilon Ampersand.svg
   |Example of ampersand based on a crossed [[epsilon]], as might be handwritten
}}</div>

The ampersand can be traced back to the 1st century AD and the old [[Roman cursive]], in which the letters E and T occasionally were written together to form a [[typographic ligature|ligature]] (Evolution of the ampersand – figure 1). In the later and more flowing New Roman Cursive, ligatures of all kinds were extremely common; figures 2 and 3 from the middle of 4th century are examples of how the et-ligature could look in this script. During the later development of the Latin script leading up to [[Carolingian minuscule]] (9th century) the use of ligatures in general diminished. The et-ligature, however, continued to be used and gradually became more stylized and less revealing of its origin (figures 4–6).<ref name="Tschichold">Jan Tschichold: [https://web.archive.org/web/20140701/http://www.typeforum.de/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=41&mode=&order=0 "Formenwandlung der et-Zeichen."]</ref>

The modern [[italic type]] ampersand is a kind of "[[:wikt:et|et]]" ligature that goes back to the cursive scripts developed during the [[Renaissance]]. After the advent of [[printing]] in Europe in 1455, printers made extensive use of both the italic and Roman ampersands. Since the ampersand's roots go back to Roman times, many languages that use a variation of the [[Latin alphabet]] make use of it.

The ampersand often appeared as a character at the end of the Latin alphabet, as for example in [[Byrhtferth|Byrhtferð's]] list of letters from 1011.<ref>{{cite web|last=Everson|first=Michael|author2=Sigurðsson, Baldur|author3=Málstöð, Íslensk|date=7 June 1994|title=On the status of the Latin letter þorn and of its sorting order|url=http://www.evertype.com/standards/wynnyogh/thorn.html|url-status=live|work=Evertype|access-date=16 November 2010|archive-date=24 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180924083021/http://www.evertype.com/standards/wynnyogh/thorn.html}}</ref> Similarly, {{char|&}} was regarded as the 27th letter of the [[English alphabet]], as taught to children in the US and elsewhere. An example may be seen in M. B. Moore's 1863 book ''The Dixie Primer, for the Little Folks''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://docsouth.unc.edu/imls/moore/moore.html#moore5|work=Branson, Farrar & Co., Raleigh NC|title=The Dixie Primer, for the Little Folks|access-date=16 November 2010|archive-date=5 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110505095849/http://docsouth.unc.edu/imls/moore/moore.html#moore5|url-status=live}}</ref> In her 1859 novel ''[[Adam Bede]]'', [[George Eliot]] refers to this when she makes Jacob Storey say: "He thought it <nowiki>[Z]</nowiki> had only been put to finish off th' alphabet like; though ampusand would ha' done as well, for what he could see."<ref>{{cite book |first=George |last=Eliot |title=Adam Bede |chapter=Chapter XXI |chapter-url=http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=217795&pageno=152 |via=[[Project Gutenberg]] |access-date=16 November 2010 |archive-date=24 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924093138/http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=217795&pageno=152 |url-status=live }}</ref> The popular nursery rhyme [[Apple Pie ABC]] finishes with the lines "X, Y, Z, and ampersand, All wished for a piece in hand".
{{clr}}

==Similar characters==
[[File:Pay and Display sign with Tironian et for Irish agus.jpg|thumb|upright 0.75|Bilingual Irish street sign, with parallel {{lang|ga|agus}} and ampersand.]]

In [[Irish language|Irish]] and [[Scottish Gaelic]], the character {{char|⁊}} ({{unichar|204A|Tironian sign et|nlink=wikt:⁊}}) is used in place of the ampersand. This character is a survival of [[Tironian notes]], a [[medieval]] [[shorthand]] system. This character is known as the Tironian Et in English, the {{lang|ga|agus}} in Irish, and the {{lang|gd|agusan}} in Scottish Gaelic.

In [[Swedish language|Swedish]], {{char|o̱}} is frequently used as a substitute for {{char|&}}, particularly in handwriting and in prose.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sprakradet.se/16094|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140402001718/http://www.sprakradet.se/16094|archive-date=2014-04-02|date=2013-04-14|title=Varifrån kommer o med streck under?|publisher=Språkrådet|lang=sv}}</ref>

The [[logical conjunction]] symbol, {{char|∧}}, is often pronounced "and," but is not related to the ampersand.

==Writing the ampersand==
In everyday [[handwriting]], the ampersand is sometimes simplified in design as a large lowercase [[epsilon]] {{char|Ɛ}} superimposed with a vertical line.<ref name="handwriting" /> The ampersand is also sometimes shown as an epsilon with a vertical line above and below it or a dot above and below it.<ref name="handwriting" />

The [[plus sign]] {{char|+}} (itself based on an et-ligature<ref>{{cite book|last=Cajori|first=Florian|title=A History of Mathematical Notations, Vol. 1|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.200372|year=1928|publisher=The Open Court Company, Publishers|chapter=Origin and meanings of the signs + and −}}</ref>) is often informally used in place of an ampersand, sometimes with an added loop and resembling {{char|ɬ}}.{{citation needed|date=May 2020}} Other times it is a single stroke with a diagonal line connecting the bottom to the left side. This was a version of shorthand for ampersand, and the stroke economy of this version provided ease of writing for workers while also assuring the character was distinct from other numeric or alphabetic symbols.

<div class='skin-invert-image'>{{gallery |height=100
|File:Ampersand Handwriting 1.jpg
  |An ampersand written with a vertical stroke<ref name="handwriting">{{cite web|url=https://www.webpagefx.com/blog/web-design/visual-guide-ampersand/|work=Six Revisions|title=A Visual Guide to the Ampersand (Infographic)|date=13 October 2011|access-date=24 June 2017|archive-date=15 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171115161814/https://www.webpagefx.com/blog/web-design/visual-guide-ampersand/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|File:Ampersand Handwriting 3.jpg 
   |An ampersand written with the vertical stroke merged into the edges<ref name="handwriting" />
|File:Ampersand Handwriting 2.jpg 
   |A handwritten [[plus sign]] used, like the ampersand, to mean "and"
}}</div>

==Usage==
Ampersands are commonly seen in business names formed from a partnership of two or more people, such as ''[[Johnson & Johnson]]'', ''[[Dolce & Gabbana]]'', ''[[Marks & Spencer]]'' and ''[[Tiffany & Co]]'', as well as some abbreviations containing the word ''and'', such as ''[[AT&T]]'' (American Telephone and Telegraph), ''[[A&P]]'' (supermarkets), ''[[P&O]]'' (originally "Peninsular and Oriental", shipping and logistics company), ''R&D'' ([[research and development]]), ''D&B'' ([[drum and bass]]), ''D&D'' ([[Dungeons & Dragons]]), ''R&B'' ([[rhythm and blues]]), ''B&B'' ([[bed and breakfast]]), and ''P&L'' ([[profit and loss]]).<ref>{{cite web|title=Ampersands|url=http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/data/faq/topics/Ampersands.html?old=Ampersands01.html|access-date=1 April 2015|website=ChicagoManualOfStyle.org|archive-date=2 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402143026/http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/data/faq/topics/Ampersands.html?old=Ampersands01.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JZqfZfIvtlsC&pg=PA49 |title=Robert Hartwell Fiske's Dictionary of Unendurable English: A Compendium of Mistakes in Grammar, Usage, and Spelling with Commentary on Lexicographers |isbn=9781451651348 |access-date=23 September 2016 |archive-date=20 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170220011841/https://books.google.com/books?id=JZqfZfIvtlsC&pg=PA49 |url-status=live |last1=Fiske |first1=Robert Hartwell |date=November 2011 |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]}}</ref>

In [[film]] credits for stories, [[screenplay]]s, etc., ''&'' indicates a closer collaboration than ''and''. The ampersand is used by the [[Writers Guild of America]] to denote two writers collaborating on a specific script, rather than one writer rewriting another's work. In screenplays, two authors joined with ''&'' collaborated on the script, while two authors joined with ''and'' worked on the script at different times and may not have consulted each other at all.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wga.org/the-guild/about-us/faq#credits4|title=Frequently Asked Questions|work=Writers Guild of America|access-date=24 September 2018|archive-date=26 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126032418/https://www.wga.org/the-guild/about-us/faq#credits4|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Screenwriter's Bible |last=Trottier |first=David |edition=5th expanded & updated |isbn=978-1-935247-02-9 |page=142|year=2010 |publisher=Silman-James Press }}</ref> In the latter case, they both contributed enough significant material to the screenplay to receive credit but did not work together. As a result, both & and ''and'' may appear in the same credit, as appropriate to how the writing proceeded.

In [[APA style]], the ampersand is used when citing sources in text such as (Jones & Jones, 2005). In the list of references, an ampersand precedes the last author's name when there is more than one author.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/03/ |title=Purdue OWL: APA Formatting and Style Guide |publisher=Owl.english.purdue.edu |access-date=8 May 2012 |archive-date=30 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120430193707/http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/03/ |url-status=live }}</ref> (This does not apply to [[The MLA Style Manual|MLA style]], which calls for the "and" to be spelled.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/06/ |title=Purdue OWL: MLA Formatting and Style Guide |publisher=Owl.english.purdue.edu |date=9 February 2012 |access-date=8 May 2012 |archive-date=12 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512031037/http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/06/ |url-status=live }}</ref>)

The phrase {{lang|LA|[[et cetera]]}} ("and the rest"), usually written as ''etc.'' can be abbreviated ''&c.'' representing the combination ''et'' + ''c(etera)''.

The ampersand can be used to indicate that the "and" in a listed item is a part of the item's name and not a separator (e.g. "Rock, pop, rhythm & blues and hip hop").{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}

The ampersand may still be used as an abbreviation for "and" in informal writing regardless of how "and" is used.

==Computing==

===Encoding and display===

The character exists in many computer character sets, usually at 38 (26<sub>hex</sub>) from [[ASCII]]. [[Unicode]] provides the following variants:

* {{unichar|0026|html=}}
* {{unichar|FE60|SMALL AMPERSAND|html=|note=fullwidth CJK ideograph for East Asian typography}}
* {{unichar|FF06|FULLWIDTH AMPERSAND|html=|note=in block [[Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms (Unicode block)|Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms]]}}
* {{unichar|214B|TURNED AMPERSAND|html=|note=in block [[Letterlike Symbols]]}}
* {{unichar|1f670|SCRIPT LIGATURE ET ORNAMENT|html=}}
* {{unichar|1f671|HEAVY SCRIPT LIGATURE ET ORNAMENT|html=}}
* {{unichar|1f672|LIGATURE OPEN ET ORNAMENT|html=}}
* {{unichar|1f673|HEAVY LIGATURE OPEN ET ORNAMENT|html=}}
* {{unichar|1f674|HEAVY AMPERSAND ORNAMENT|html=}}
* {{unichar|1f675|SWASH AMPERSAND ORNAMENT|html=}}

The last six of these are carryovers from the [[Wingdings]] fonts, and are meant only for backward compatibility with those fonts.

On the [[QWERTY]] [[keyboard layout]], the ampersand is {{keypress|shift|7}}. It is almost always available on keyboard layouts, sometimes on {{keypress|shift|6}} or {{keypress|shift|8}}. On the [[AZERTY]] keyboard layout, {{keypress|&}} is an unmodified keystroke, positioned above {{keypress|A}}.

===Programming languages===
{{more citations needed|section|date=July 2020}}
In the 20th century, following the development of [[formal logic]], the ampersand became a commonly used logical notation for the [[binary operator]] or [[sentential connective]] ''[[logical conjunction|AND]]''. This usage was adopted in computing.

Many languages with syntax derived from [[C (programming language)|C]], including [[C++]], [[Perl]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.perl.com/doc/manual/html/pod/perlop.html|title=perlop – Perl operators and precedence|access-date=31 May 2007|archive-date=30 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070530084933/http://www.perl.com/doc/manual/html/pod/perlop.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and more<!-- PLEASE ADD THEM HERE! --> differentiate between:
* {{code|&}} for [[bitwise operation|bitwise]] AND {{code|(4 & 2)}} is zero, {{code|(4 & 5)}} is 4.
* {{code|&&}} for [[minimal evaluation|short-circuit]] [[logical conjunction|logical AND]] {{code|(4 && 2)}} is true.{{efn| This is different from [[Java (programming language) | Java]], where the {{code|&&}} operator is exclusively used on [[Boolean data type | Boolean]] types.}}

In [[C (programming language)|C]], [[C++]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Pointers - C++ Tutorials|url=https://www.cplusplus.com/doc/tutorial/pointers/#reference|url-status=live|access-date=2021-06-18|archive-date=17 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210617114528/https://www.cplusplus.com/doc/tutorial/pointers/#reference}}</ref> [[Rust (programming language)|Rust]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Pointer types|url=https://doc.rust-lang.org/reference/types/pointer.html|publisher=doc.rust-lang.org}}</ref> and [[Go (programming language)|Go]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Go Programming Language Specification|url=https://golang.org/ref/spec#Address_operators|url-status=live|access-date=2021-06-18|archive-date=13 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513024511/https://golang.org/ref/spec#Address_operators}}</ref> a prefix {{code|&}} is a unary operator denoting the [[memory address|address in memory]] of the argument, e.g. {{code|&x, &func, &a[3]}}.

In [[C++]] and [[PHP]], unary prefix {{code|&}} before a [[parameter (computer science)|formal parameter]] of a [[function (programming)|function]] denotes [[reference (C++)|pass-by-reference]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Pass by reference (C++ only)|url=https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/zos/2.4.0?topic=calls-pass-by-reference-c-only|access-date=2021-10-23|website=www.ibm.com|language=en-us|archive-date=23 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023093850/https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/zos/2.4.0?topic=calls-pass-by-reference-c-only|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=PHP: Passing by Reference - Manual|url=https://www.php.net/manual/en/language.references.pass.php|access-date=2021-10-23|website=www.php.net|archive-date=23 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023093850/https://www.php.net/manual/en/language.references.pass.php|url-status=live}}</ref>

In [[Pascal (programming language)|Pascal]], the {{code|&}} as the first character of an identifier prevents the compiler from treating it as a keyword, thus ''[[Escape character|escaping]]'' it.

In [[Fortran]], the ampersand forces the compiler to treat two lines as one. This is accomplished by placing an ampersand at the end of the first line and at the beginning of the second line.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pages.mtu.edu/~shene/COURSES/cs201/NOTES/chap01/continue.html |title=Fortran continuation lines |website=pages.mtu.edu |access-date=12 September 2017 |archive-date=12 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170912212152/https://pages.mtu.edu/~shene/COURSES/cs201/NOTES/chap01/continue.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In many implementations of [[ALGOL 60]] the ampersand denotes the tens exponent of a real number.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

In [[Common Lisp]], the ampersand is the prefix for [[lambda list]] keywords.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lispworks.com/documentation/HyperSpec/Body/03_da.htm |title=3.4.1 Ordinary Lambda Lists |work=Common Lisp – Hyper Spec |publisher=Lisp Works |access-date=30 August 2010 |archive-date=11 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101111112816/http://www.lispworks.com/documentation/HyperSpec/Body/03_da.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

Ampersand is the [[string concatenation]] operator in many [[BASIC programming language|BASIC dialects]], [[AppleScript]], [[Lingo (programming language)|Lingo]], [[HyperTalk]], and [[FileMaker]].{{citation needed|date=July 2020}} In [[Ada (programming language)|Ada]] it applies to all one-dimensional arrays, not just strings.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

[[BASIC-PLUS]] on the [[Digital Equipment Corporation|DEC]] [[PDP-11]] uses the ampersand as a short form of the verb {{code|PRINT}}.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

[[Applesoft BASIC]] used the ampersand as an internal command, not intended to be used for general programming, that invoked a [[machine language]] program in the computer's [[Read-only memory|ROM]].{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

In some versions of BASIC, unary suffix & denotes a variable is of type ''long'', or 32 [[bit]]s in length.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

The ampersand was occasionally used as a prefix to denote a [[hexadecimal]] number, such as {{code|&FF}} for decimal 255, for instance in [[BBC BASIC]].{{citation needed|date=March 2021}} (The modern convention is to use "x" as a prefix to denote hexadecimal, thus {{code|xFF}}.) Some other languages, such as the [[Machine code monitor|Monitor]] built into ROM on the [[Commodore 128]], used it to indicate [[octal]] instead, a convention that spread throughout the Commodore community and is now used in the [[VICE]] emulator.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Commodore 128 Machine Language. Part 2|url=https://www.atarimagazines.com/compute///issue76/C128ML.php|access-date=2021-03-01|website=www.atarimagazines.com|archive-date=29 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129165745/https://www.atarimagazines.com/compute/issue76/C128ML.php|url-status=live}}</ref>

In [[MySQL]], {{code|&}} has dual roles. As well as a logical AND, it serves as the bitwise operator of an intersection between elements.<ref>{{Cite web|title=MySQL :: MySQL 8.0 Reference Manual :: 12.4 Operators|url=https://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/8.0/en/non-typed-operators.html|access-date=2021-10-23|website=dev.mysql.com|archive-date=23 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023093422/https://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/8.0/en/non-typed-operators.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Dyalog APL]] uses ampersand similarly to [[#Unix shells|Unix shells]], spawning a separate [[green thread]] upon application of a function.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

In more recent years, the ampersand has made its way into the [[Haskell (programming language)|Haskell]] standard library, representing flipped [[function application]]: {{code|x & f}} means the same thing as {{code|f x}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=Data.Function |url=https://hackage.haskell.org/package/base-4.20.0.1/docs/Data-Function.html#v:-38-}}</ref>

[[Perl]] uses the ampersand as a [[Sigil (computer programming)|sigil]] to refer to subroutines:
* In Perl 4 and earlier, it was effectively required to call user-defined subroutines<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs.cmu.edu/Web/People/rgs/pl-sub.html|title=PERL – Subroutines|access-date=29 August 2019|archive-date=21 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021220807/https://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs.cmu.edu/Web/People/rgs/pl-sub.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* In Perl 5, it can still be used to modify the way user-defined subroutines are called<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.perlmonks.org/?node_id=428024|title=What is the point of the & / ampersand sigil for function refs?|work=PerlMonks|access-date=31 May 2007|archive-date=27 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927000947/http://www.perlmonks.org/?node_id=428024|url-status=live}}</ref>
* In [[Raku (programming language)|Raku]] (formerly known as Perl 6), the ampersand [[Sigil (computer programming)|sigil]] is only used when referring to a subroutine as an object, never when calling it<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.perl.com/pub/a/2003/07/29/exegesis6.html|title=Exegesis 6|work=Perl.com|date=7 July 2003|access-date=31 May 2007|archive-date=18 August 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070818062748/http://www.perl.com/pub/a/2003/07/29/exegesis6.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
In the [[Xbase]] family of languages, which includes [[dBase]] and [[FoxPro]], a singe ampersand signifies macro substitution (where elements of program code are stored in a variable for evaluation at run time). A pair of consecutive ampersands marks the start of an in-line comment.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Xbase++ Reference Documentation |url=https://doc.alaska-software.com/ |website=Alaska Software |access-date=23 March 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Visual FoxPro Reference |url=https://hackfox.github.io/section4/ |website=Hacker’s Guide to Visual FoxPro |publisher=Hentzenwerke Publishing |access-date=23 March 2025}}</ref>

In MASM 80x86 Assembly Language, {{code|&}} is the Substitution Operator, which tells the assembler to replace a macro parameter or text macro name with its actual value.<ref>Microsoft MASM Version 6.1 Programmer's Guide</ref>

Ampersand is the name of a reactive programming language, which uses [[relation algebra]] to specify [[information system]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://github.com/AmpersandTarski|title=Ampersand|website=[[GitHub]]|access-date=5 March 2019|archive-date=31 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190531000330/https://github.com/AmpersandTarski|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Text markup===
In [[SGML]], [[XML]], and [[HTML]], the ampersand is used to introduce an [[SGML entity]], such as {{code|&nbsp;}} (for non-breaking space) or {{code|&alpha;}} (for the Greek letter α). The HTML and XML encoding for the ampersand character is the entity {{code|&amp;}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/guidelines.html#C_12|title=HTML Compatibility Guidelines|work=World Wide Web Consortium|access-date=19 April 2006|archive-date=14 April 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060414194529/http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/guidelines.html#C_12|url-status=live}}</ref> This can create a problem known as [[delimiter#Delimiter collision|delimiter collision]] when converting text into one of these markup languages. For instance, when putting URLs or other material containing ampersands into XML format files such as [[RSS (file format)|RSS]] files the & must be replaced with &amp;amp; or they are considered not well formed, and computers will be unable to read the files correctly. SGML derived the use from [[IBM Generalized Markup Language]], which was one of many IBM-mainframe languages to use the ampersand to signal a text substitution, eventually going back to [[IBM System/360|System/360]] macro assembly language.

In the plain [[TeX]] [[markup language]], the ampersand is used to mark [[tabstop]]s. The ampersand itself can be applied in TeX with {{code|\&}}. The [[Computer Modern]] fonts replace it with an "E.T." symbol in the {{math|cmti''#''|size=100%}} (text italic) fonts, so it can be entered as {{code|{\it\&} }} in running text when using the default (Computer Modern) fonts.<ref>{{cite book |title=The TeXbook |url=https://archive.org/details/texbook00dona |url-access=registration |last=Knuth |first=Donald |year=1986 |isbn=0-201-13447-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/texbook00dona/page/428 428]|publisher=Addison-Wesley }}</ref>

In [[Microsoft Windows]] menus, labels, and other captions, the ampersand is used to denote the next letter as a keyboard shortcut (called an "Access key" by Microsoft).<ref name=msdn /> For instance setting a button label to {{code|"&Print"}} makes it display as {{underline|P}}rint and for {{keypress|[[Alt key|Alt]]|P}} to be a shortcut equivalent to pressing that button. A double ampersand is needed in order to display a real ampersand. This convention originated in the first WIN32 api, and is used in [[Windows Forms]],<ref name=msdn>[http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/az5a73z1.aspx How to: Create Access Keys for Windows Forms Controls] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003091129/http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/az5a73z1.aspx |date=3 October 2009 }}, from msdn.microsoft.com</ref> (but not WPF, which uses underscore {{char|_}} for this purpose) and is also copied into many other toolkits on multiple operating systems. Sometimes this causes problems similar to other programs that fail to sanitize markup from user input, for instance [[Navision]] databases have trouble if this character is in either "Text" or "Code" fields.

===Unix shells===
Some Unix shells use the ampersand as a [[metacharacter]]:

Some Unix shells, like the [[POSIX]] standard <code>sh</code> shell, use an ampersand to [[job control (Unix)|execute a process in the background]] and to duplicate [[file descriptor]]s.
* In [[Bash (Unix shell)|Bash]], the ampersand can separate words, control the command history, duplicate file descriptors, perform logical operations, control jobs, and participate in [[regular expression]]s.<ref>{{cite web|title=UNIX Manual page: bash – GNU Bourne-Again SHell|url=http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/manpage?1+bash|first1=Brian|last1=Fox|first2=Chet|last2=Ramey|date=28 September 2006|format=manpage|access-date=20 June 2009|archive-date=2 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202235609/http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/manpage?1+bash|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Web standards===
The generic [[Uniform Resource Locator|URL]] (Uniform Resource Locator) syntax allows for a [[query string]] to be appended to a file name in a web address so that additional information can be passed to a script; the [[question mark]], or query mark, {{char|?}}, is used to indicate the start of a query string.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/appendix/notes.html#ampersands-in-uris |title="Ampersands in URI attribute values" |access-date=7 June 2007 |archive-date=7 June 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070607043429/http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/appendix/notes.html#ampersands-in-uris |url-status=live }}</ref> A query string is usually made up of a number of different [[name–value pair]]s, each separated by the ampersand symbol, {{char|&}}. For example, {{code|1=http://www.example.org/list.php?id=1&order=ascending}}. A "real" ampersand must be replaced by <code>%26</code> to avoid interpretation as this syntax.

==Typeface samples==
<!-- Advice to editors: most typefaces (fonts) are still in copyright. A sample may be used in an article about the typeface itself but not elsewhere. -->
<div class='skin-invert-image'>{{gallery
|width=120 | height=120
|File:NotoSans - Script Ligature Et Ornament - 1F670.svg |[[Noto Sans]] - Script Ligature Et Ornament
|File:NotoSans - Ligature Open Et Ornament - 1F672.svg |Noto Sans - Ligature Open Et Ornament
|File:OCR-A_char_Ampersand.svg |The ampersand character, in the [[OCR-A font]]
|File:& (italic, 1735).svg | Italic ampersand from [[An Essay Concerning Human Understanding|a 1735 book]] (redrawn)
}}</div>
{{gallery
|width=120 | height=120
|File:Albertus 481 100 1936 (5637417032).jpg | [[Albertus (typeface)]] sampler (1936). Two styles of ampersand are shown.
|File:Motorway Typeface - 1958 Sample.svg |[[Motorway (typeface)]] sampler (1958)
|File:MillerSpecimen.svg | [[Miller (typeface)]] sampler (1997)
}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==See also==
* [[And (disambiguation)]]
* [[List of typographical symbols and punctuation marks]]
* [[Kai (abbreviation)]]
* [[Heta]]
* [[Tironian notes]]
* [[Ampersand curve]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wiktionary|ampersand|epershand}}
{{Commons}}
* {{Cite web |title=The History of 'Ampersand' |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/the-history-of-ampersand |access-date=2022-07-27 |website=Merriam-Webster }}
* [http://hotword.dictionary.com/ampersand The Hot Word at Dictionary.com: How ampersand came from a misunderstanding]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020103026/http://hotword.dictionary.com/ampersand/ |date=20 October 2013 }}.
* [http://video.merriam-webster.com/0043-ampersand.mp4?ec_rate=72 "Ask the Editor: Ampersand", video at Merriam-Webster.com (2:01). Retrieved 2013-10-18]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019172342/http://video.merriam-webster.com/0043-ampersand.mp4?ec_rate=72 |date=19 October 2013 }}.
* [https://www.p22.com/family-Goudy_Aries Font of 52 ampersands], designed by [[Frederic Goudy]]

{{Common logical symbols}}
{{navbox punctuation}}

[[Category:Latin-script letters]]
[[Category:Latin-script ligatures]]
[[Category:Logic symbols]]
[[Category:Typographical symbols]]
[[Category:Graphemes]]
[[Category:Punctuation]]