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{{Short description|Monogram for Jesus Christ}}
[[File:Simple_Labarum.svg|thumb|Chrismon]]
[[File:Chrisme Colosseum Rome Italy.jpg|thumb| [[Chi-Rho]] symbol with [[Alpha and Omega]] on a 4th-century sarcophagus ([[Vatican Museums]])]]

A '''Christogram''' ({{langx|la|Monogramma Christi}}){{efn|The portmanteau of ''Christo-'' and ''-gramma'' is modern, first introduced in German as {{lang|de|[[:wikt:Christogramm|Christogramm]]}} in the mid-18th century. Its adoption into English as ''[[:wikt:Christogram|Christogram]]'' dates to {{c.|1900}}.}} is a [[monogram]] or combination of letters that forms an abbreviation for the name of [[Jesus Christ]], traditionally used as a [[Christian symbolism|religious symbol]] within the [[Christian Church]].

One of the oldest Christograms is the [[Chi-Rho]] (☧). It consists of the superimposed Greek letters [[Chi (letter)|chi]] {{lang|grc|(Χ)}} and [[Rho (letter)|rho]] {{lang|grc|(Ρ)}}, which are the first two letters of the Greek {{lang|grc|χριστός}}, 'Christ'. It was displayed on the {{lang|la|[[labarum]]}} military standard used by [[Constantine I]] in 312 AD. The [[IX monogram]] ([[File:Christliche Symbolik (Menzel) I 193 4.jpg|15px]]) is a similar form, using the initials of the name {{lang|grc|Ἰησοῦς (ὁ) Χριστός}}, 'Jesus (the) Christ', as is the [[IH monogram|ΙΗ monogram]] ([[File:IH Monogram with iota and eta superimposed.jpg|15px]]), using the first two letters of the name {{lang|grc|ΙΗΣΟΥΣ}}, 'JESUS' in uppercase.

There were a very considerable number of variants of "Christograms" or monograms of Christ in use during the medieval period, with the boundary between specific monograms and mere [[scribal abbreviations]] somewhat fluid.

The name ''Jesus'', spelt {{lang|grc|ΙΗΣΟΥΣ}} in Greek capitals, has the abbreviations ''IHS'' (also written ''JHS, IHC'', or ''ΙΗΣ''). The name ''Christus'' , spelt {{lang|grc|ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ}}, has ''XP'' (and inflectional variants such as ''IX, XPO, XPS, XPI, XPM''). In Eastern Christian tradition, the monogram ΙϹΧϹ (with [[Overline]] indicating scribal abbreviation) is used for {{lang|grc|Ἰησοῦς Χριστός}} in both Greek and Cyrillic tradition.

A [[Middle Latin]] term for abbreviations of the name of Christ is {{lang|la|chrisimus}}.<ref>[http://ducange.enc.sorbonne.fr/CHRISIMUS Chrisimus] (par les Bénédictins de St. Maur, 1733–1736), in: du Cange, et al., ''Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis'', ed. augm., Niort : L. Favre, 1883‑1887, t. 2, col. 317b. "CHRISIMUS, Nomen Christi abbreviatum in antiquis instrumentis secundum diversos casus sic XPS. XPI. XPO. XPM. ubi media littera P. Græcum. Vox Chrisimus legitur in Annal. Benedict. tom. 5. pag. 7."</ref> Similarly, the Middle Latin {{lang|la|[[:wikt:crismon|crismon]]}}, {{lang|la|chrismon}} refers to the Chi-Rho monogram specifically.<ref>[http://ducange.enc.sorbonne.fr/CRISMON Crismon] (par les Bénédictins de St. Maur, 1733–1736), in: du Cange, et al., ''Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis'', ed. augm., Niort : L. Favre, 1883‑1887, t. 2, col. 621b.

"CRISMON, Nota quæ in libro ex voluntate uniuscujusque ad aliquid notandum ponitur. Papias in MS. Bituric. Crismon vel Chrismon proprie est Monogramma Christi sic expressum ☧"

[http://ducange.enc.sorbonne.fr/CHRISMON1 1 chrismon] (par les Bénédictins de St. Maur, 1733–1736), in: du Cange, et al., ''Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis'', ed. augm., Niort : L. Favre, 1883‑1887, t. 2, col. [http://media.enc.sorbonne.fr/ducange/jpg/C/318c.jpg  318c], citing Heumann. de re Diplom. inde a Carol. M. §&nbsp;12; Murator. Antiquit. Ital. tom. 3. col. 75.</ref>

== Symbols ==
=== Chi (Χ) ===
{{further|Chi (letter)}}
In antiquity, the [[Christian cross|cross]], i.e. the [[instrument of Christ's crucifixion]] ({{lang|la|[[crux simplex|crux]]}}, {{transliteration|grc|[[stauros]]}}), was taken to be [[Tau cross|T-shaped]], while the [[Chi (letter)|X]]-shape ("[[chiasmus]]") had different connotations. There has been scholarly speculation on the development of the Christian cross, the letter Chi used to abbreviate the name of [[Christ]], and the various pre-Christian symbolism associated with the chiasmus interpreted in terms of "the mystery of the [[Pre-existence of Christ|pre-existent Christ]]".<ref name=Grigg477>{{cite journal |last=Grigg |first=Robert |title="Symphōnian Aeidō tēs Basileias": An Image of Imperial Harmony on the Base of the Column of Arcadius |journal= The Art Bulletin |volume=59 |issue=4 |date= 1977 |pages= 477; 469–482 |doi= 10.2307/3049702|jstor=3049702 }}</ref>

In [[Plato]]'s {{lang|la|[[Timaeus (dialogue)|Timaeus]]}}, it is explained that the two bands which form the "world soul" ({{lang|la|[[anima mundi]]}}) cross each other like the letter Chi, possibly referring to the [[ecliptic]] crossing the [[celestial equator]]:

{{blockquote|And thus the whole mixture out of which he cut these portions was all exhausted by him. This entire compound divided lengthways into two parts, which he joined to one another at the centre like the letter X, and bent them into a circular form, connecting them with themselves and each other at the point opposite to their original meeting-point; and, comprehending them in a uniform revolution upon the same axis, he made the one the outer and the other the inner circle.|source=Plato, {{lang|la|Timaeus}}, 8.36b and 8.36c<ref>[http://www.fullbooks.com/Timaeus3.html 8.36b and 8.36c]</ref>}}

{{blockquote|The two [[great circle]]s of the heavens, the equator and the ecliptic, which, by intersecting each other form a sort of recumbent chi and about which the whole dome of the starry heavens swings in a wondrous rhythm, became for the Christian eye a heavenly cross.|source={{harvnb|Rahner|1971|pp=49–50}}. See also  {{harvnb|Grigg|1977|p=477}}}}

[[Justin Martyr]] in the 2nd century makes explicit reference to Plato's image in {{lang|la|Timaeus}} in terms of a prefiguration of the Holy Cross.<ref>Justin. ''Apologia'', 1.60.</ref> An early statement may be the phrase in ''[[Didache]]'', "sign of extension in heaven" ({{transliteration|grc|sēmeion epektaseōs en ouranōi}}).<ref name=Grigg477 />

An alternative explanation of the intersecting celestial symbol has been advanced by George Latura, claiming that Plato's "visible god" in {{lang|la|Timaeus}} is the intersection of the Milky Way and the Zodiacal Light, a rare apparition important to pagan beliefs. He said that Christian bishops reframed this as a Christian symbol.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Latura|first=George|title=Plato's Visible God: The Cosmic Soul Reflected in the Heavens|journal=Religions|volume=3|issue=3|year=2012|pages=880–886|doi=10.3390/rel3030880|doi-access=free}}</ref>

The most commonly encountered Christogram in English-speaking countries in modern times is the Χ (or more accurately, Chi), representing the first letter of the word ''Christ'', in such abbreviations as ''[[Xmas]]'' (for "Christmas") and ''[[Xian (abbreviation)|Xian]]'' or ''Xtian'' (for "Christian").

===Iota Chi (IX)===
{{Main|IX monogram|l1=IX monogram}}
[[File:Chrisme Constantinople.jpg|thumb|A IX monogram from a 4th century [[Sarcophagus]] from [[Constantinople]]]]

An early form of the monogram of Christ, found in early Christian [[ossuaries]] in [[Palestine (region)|Palaestina]], was formed by superimposing the first (capital) letters of the Greek words for [[Jesus]] and [[Christ]], i.e. [[iota (letter)|iota]] '''Ι''' and [[chi (letter)|chi]] '''Χ''', so that this [[monogram]] means "Jesus Christ".<ref name="Bagatti">{{cite book |last=Bagatti |first=Bellarmino |author-link= Bellarmino Bagatti |year=1984 |title=The Church from the Circumcision: History and Archaeology of the Judaeo-Christians |series=Studium Biblicum Franciscanum, Collectio Minor, n.2 |location=Jerusalem |publisher=Franciscan Print. Press |oclc=17529706}}</ref>{{rp|166}}

=== Chi Rho (ΧΡ) ===
{{Main|Chi Rho}}

[[File:Chrismon Sancti Ambrosii.jpg|thumb|A [[Chi Rho]] combined with [[Alpha and Omega]], in 1669 labelled {{lang|la|Chrismon Sancti Ambrosii}}, [[Milan Cathedral]]{{efn|The symbol was moved to storage for the refurbishments under [[Pellegrino Tibaldi]] and re-instated in the choir on 6 September 1669.<ref>http://www.storiadimilano.it/cron/dal1651al1675.htm storiadimilano.it</ref><!--the point being that this is a 17th-century attestation of "chrismon"--> Use of the name {{lang|la|Chrismon}} is apparently based on the term {{lang|la|crismon}} as used by [[Landulf of Milan]];<ref>[http://www.mlat.uzh.ch/MLS/xfromcc.php?tabelle=Landulfus_Mediolanensis_cps2&rumpfid=Landulfus_Mediolanensis_cps2,%20Historia%20Mediolanensis&id=Landulfus_Mediolanensis_cps2,%20Historia%20Mediolanensis&corpus=2&lang=0&von=overview_by_author I.12]</ref> Landulf's mention of a ''crismon'' of [[Saint Ambrose]] clearly refers to [[chrism]], i.e. holy oil, not a symbol.<ref>I. A. Ferrai, "I Fonti di Landolfo Seniore", ''Bullettino dell'Istituto storico italiano'' 14 (1895), [https://archive.org/stream/bullettinodelli13italgoog#page/n34/mode/2up p. 29].</ref>}}]]
The [[Alpha and Omega]] symbols may at times accompany the Chi-Rho monogram.<ref>''Allegory of the Church'' by Calvin Kendall 1998 {{ISBN|1-4426-1309-2}} page 137</ref> Since the 17th century, {{lang|la|[[:wikt:chrismon|Chrismon]]}} ({{lang|la|chrismum}}; also {{lang|la|chrismos, chrismus}}) has been used as a [[Neo-Latin]] term for the Chi Rho monogram.

Because the {{lang|la|chrismon}} was used as a kind of "invocation" at the beginning of documents of the [[Merovingian period]], the term also came to be used of the  "[[cross-signature]]s" in early medieval charters.{{efn|While in English literature of the 19th to mid 20th century, {{lang|la|chrismon}} refers to the Chi Rho monogram exclusively, the German-language usage has also come to be adopted in some cases in the specific context of medieval sigla, especially in works translated from German into English, e.g.
Hans Belting, Edmund Jephcott (trans.), ''Likeness and Presence: A History of the Image Before the Era of Art'' (1997), pp. 107–109.<ref>For German usage, see Ersch ''et al''., Volume 1, Issue 29 of ''Allgemeine Encyklopädie der Wissenschaften und Künste'', 1837, [https://books.google.com/books?id=sgxJAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA303 p. 303] {{in lang|de}}.
Johann Christoph Gatterer, ''Elementa artis diplomaticae universalis'' (1765), [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_4lgnePhbj5wC/page/n170  p. 145] ( '' Abriß der Diplomatik'' 1798,
[https://books.google.com/books?id=NaRAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA64  p. 64]).</ref>}} {{lang|la|Chrismon}} in this context may refer to the Merovingian period abbreviation ''I. C. N.'' for {{lang|la|in Christi nomine}}, later (in the [[Carolingian period]]) also ''I. C.'' for {{lang|la|in Christo}}, and still later (in the high medieval period) just ''C.'' for {{lang|la|Christus}}.<ref>Johann Christoph Gatterer, ''Abriß der Diplomatik'' (1798),
[https://books.google.com/books?id=NaRAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA64 p. 64f].
Carl Ernst Bohn, ''Allgemeine deutsche Bibliothek'' vol. 111 (1792), [https://books.google.com/books?id=s2hcAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA521 p. 521].</ref>

[[St Cuthbert's coffin]] (late 7th century) has an exceptional realisation of the Christogram written in [[Anglo-Saxon runes]], as ᛁᚻᛋ ᛉᛈᛋ, transliterated to the Latin alphabet as 'IHS XPS', with the ''chi'' rendered as the ''[[eolh]]'' rune (the old ''z'' or ''algiz'' rune) and the ''rho'' rendered as the [[Peorth|p-rune]].

=== IHS ===
[[File:IHS Christogram 1864 Bible.jpg|thumb|IHS Christogram embossed on an 1864 leather-bound King James Bible]]
In the [[Latin]]-speaking Christianity of medieval Western Europe (and so among Catholics and many [[Protestant]]s today), the most common Christogram became "IHS" or "IHC", denoting the first three letters of the [[Greek language|Greek]] name of Jesus, {{lang|grc|ΙΗΣΟΥΣ}}, ''[[iota]]-[[eta (letter)|eta]]-[[sigma (letter)|sigma]]'', or {{lang|grc|ΙΗΣ}}.<ref name=Gieben>''Christian sacrament and devotion'' by Servus Gieben 1997 {{ISBN|90-04-06247-5}} page 18</ref><ref name=Becker>''The Continuum encyclopedia of symbols'' by Udo Becker 2000 {{ISBN|0-8264-1221-1}} page 54</ref><ref name=CathHoly>{{cite web|url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07421a.htm|title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Holy Name of Jesus|work=New Advent}}</ref>

The Greek letter ''iota'' is represented by 'I', and the ''eta'' by 'H', while the Greek letter ''sigma'' is either in its lunate form, represented by 'C', or its final form, represented by 'S'. Because the Latin-alphabet letters ''I'' and ''J'' were not systematically distinguished until the 17th century, "JHS" and "JHC" are equivalent to "IHS" and "IHC".

"IHS" is sometimes interpreted as meaning {{langx|grc|ΙΗΣΟΥΣ ΗΜΕΤΕΡΟΣ ΣΩΤΗΡ|Iēsous Hēmeteros Sōtēr|Jesus our Saviour|label=none}} or in Latin {{lang|la|Jesus Hominum}} (or {{lang|la|Hierosolymae}}) {{lang|la|Salvator}}, ('Jesus, Saviour of men [or: of Jerusalem]' in Latin)<ref name=IHS_CathEnc>Maere, René. "IHS." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910.</ref> or connected with {{lang|la|[[In hoc signo vinces|In Hoc Signo]]}}. English-language interpretations of "IHS" have included "In His Service".<ref name="Bush(NA)2004">{{cite book|last1=Bush|first1=Brian Paige|last2=(NA)|first2=Bush|title=His Blueprint In The Bible: A Study Of The Number Three In Scripture|date=1 March 2004|publisher=Dorrance Publishing Co.|language=English|isbn=9780805963823|page=9}}</ref> Such interpretations are known as [[backronym|backformed acronyms]].

Used in Latin since the seventh century, the first use of ''IHS'' in an English document dates from the fourteenth century, in ''[[Piers Plowman]]''.<ref>{{OED|IHS}}</ref> In the 15th century, [[Saint Bernardino of Siena]] popularized the use of the three letters on the background of a blazing sun to displace both popular pagan symbols and seals of political factions like the [[Guelphs and Ghibellines]] in public spaces (see [[Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus]]).

The IHS monogram with the H surmounted by a cross above [[triclavianism|three nails]] and surrounded by a [[Sol Invictus|Sun]] is the emblem of the [[Jesuits]], according to tradition introduced by [[Ignatius of Loyola]] in 1541.<ref name=IHS_CathEnc />

IHS has been known to appear on gravestones, especially among Irish Catholics.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Romano |first1=Ron |title=Portland's Historic Eastern Cemetery: A Field of Ancient Graves |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |page=87}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=New Jersey Cemeteries and Tombstones: History in the Landscape |date=2008 |publisher=Rutgers University Press |page=179}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Irish South Australia: New histories and insights |date=2019 |publisher=Wakefield Press |page=81}}</ref>

====Gallery with different formats of the symbol====

<gallery>
File:IHS with cross.jpg|[[File:Christogram.jpg|thumb|Northwood Cemetery Isle of Wight]]IHS or JHS Christogram of western Christianity
File:IHC-monogram-Jesus-medievalesque.svg|Medieval-style IHC monogram
File:Interlaced IHS monogram on ceiling of church of Saint-Martin de L'Isle-Adam.jpg|Intertwined IHS monogram, Saint-Martin's Church, [[L'Isle-Adam, Val-d'Oise]]
File:Clontuskert Priory Doorway IHC Monogram 2009 09 16.jpg|IHC monogram from [[Clontuskert Abbey]], Ireland
File:Jesuit emblem 1586.jpg|The Jesuit emblem from a 1586 print
File:ReformationWallGeneva IHS cropped.jpg|ΙΗΣ on the [[Reformation Wall]] in [[Geneva]], [[Switzerland]]
File:Church Door, Church of the Good Shepherd (Rosemont, Pennsylvania).jpg|Door at [[Church of the Good Shepherd (Rosemont, Pennsylvania)]] showing (from left) arms of the parish; Marian monogram; the IHS Christogram; and arms of the [[Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania]]
</gallery>

=== ICXC ===
In [[Eastern Christianity]], the most widely used Christogram is a four-letter abbreviation, ΙϹ ΧϹ—a traditional abbreviation of the Greek words for 'Jesus Christ' (i.e., the first and last letters of each of the words {{lang|grc|'''Ι'''ΗϹΟΥ'''Ϲ''' '''Χ'''ΡΙϹΤΟ'''Ϲ'''}}, with the [[sigma (letter)#Lunate sigma|lunate sigma]] 'Ϲ' common in medieval Greek),<ref>''Symbols of the Christian faith'' by Alva William Steffler 2002 {{ISBN|0-8028-4676-9}} page 67</ref> and written with [[titlo]] (diacritic) denoting [[scribal abbreviation]] ({{script|Cyrs|І︮С︯ Х︮С︯}}).

On icons, this Christogram may be split: 'ΙϹ' on the left of the image and 'ΧϹ' on the right. It is sometimes rendered as 'ΙϹ ΧϹ ΝΙΚΑ' ({{lang|grc|Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς νικᾷ}}), meaning 'Jesus Christ Conquers'. 'ΙϹΧϹ' may also be seen inscribed on the [[Ichthys]].

<gallery>
File:ICXC NIKA.svg|Depiction of the 'ΙϹ ΧϹ ΝΙΚΑ' arrangement in medieval Greek tradition
File:Spahr 63 1140 133312.jpg|'ΙϹ ΧϹ ΝΙΚΑ' cross on the obverse of a 12th-century [[Kingdom of Sicily|Sicilian]] coin ([[Roger II of Sicily|Roger II]])
File:The Greek Pantokrator on the Hungarian Holy Crown.jpg|[[Christ Pantocrator]] on the [[Holy Crown of Hungary]] (12th century)
File:Christ Pantocrator, Church of the Holy Sepulchre.png|Christ Pantocrator, [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]] (1810)
</gallery>

=== Lhq ===
{{see also|Kirishitan}}
[[File:キリシタン灯籠（梅窓院）.jpg|thumb|Lhq-inscription on a Japanese lantern]]
After [[Francis Xavier]] landed in [[Kagoshima]], Japan, in 1549, his missionary work grew and became widely distributed throughout Japan under the patronage of the {{transliteration|ja|[[daimyō]]}}. However, during the [[Edo period]] (1603–1867), Christians were persecuted and forced to hide. Because they were forbidden to openly reverence the images of Christ or [[Mary, mother of Jesus|Mary]], it is believed that they transferred their worship to other carved images and marked them with secret symbols understood only by the initiates. Certain [[Tōrō|Japanese lanterns]], notably the {{transliteration|ja|Kirishitan dōrō}} ({{lang|ja|キリシタン灯籠}}, 'Christian lanterns'), did bear the "Lhq" [[monogram]], which, a quarter turned, was engraved on the shaft ({{transliteration|ja|sao}}), which was buried directly into the soil without basal platform ({{lang|ja|kiso}}). The [https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Japanese_Rune_lhq_Japanese_Runic_Character.png 'Lhq'] monogram corresponds to the distorted letters 'IHS'.<ref>{{aut|JAANUS}} (2010) [https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/o/oribedourou.htm ''oribe dourou'' 織部灯籠], Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System</ref>

==Archaeology==
In 2016 a 1,300-year-old corpse, was found in a cemetery near a medieval monastery in [[Monastery in Ghazali|Ghazali, Sudan]], whose right foot bore a tattoo from medieval [[Nubia]], a region that covered parts of modern-day Egypt and Sudan, depicting a [[Chi Rho]] and an [[Alpha and Omega|Alpha Omega]]. The person, most likely male, lived sometime between 667 and 774.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/christ-tattoo-discovered-on-1300-year-old-body-in-sudan+|title='Christ' tattoo discovered on 1,300-year-old body in Sudan|author=Jarus, Owen|publisher=[[Live Science]]|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=October 21, 2023|access-date=December 17, 2023|archive-date=October 24, 2023|archive-url=https://archive.today/20231024225018/https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/christ-tattoo-discovered-on-1300-year-old-body-in-sudan}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Christian symbolism]]
* [[Holy Name of Jesus]]
* [[INRI]]
* [[Little Sachet]]
* [[Names and titles of Jesus#Abbreviations|Names and titles of Jesus]]
* [[Nomina sacra]]

== References ==
===Notes===
{{notelist}}

===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book|last=Rahner|first=Hugo |title=Greek Myths and Christian Mystery|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N8XAF-JE6PAC&pg=PA49|year=1971|publisher=Biblo & Tannen Publishers|isbn=978-0-8196-0270-1|translator= Brian Battershaw}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Monograms of the name of Jesus Christ}}
* {{webarchive |url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20050422222604/http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintOfDay/default.asp?id=1389 |title=St. Bernardine of Siena |date=2005-04-22}}

{{Personal names}}
{{Christian crosses}}

[[Category:Christian iconography]]
[[Category:Christian symbols]]
[[Category:Christian terminology]]
[[Category:Monograms]]
[[Category:Names of Jesus]]