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Symbol
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{{dablink|This article presents the essential definitions. For links to more complete treatments of specialized meanings, see
Symbol (disambiguation).}}
A '''symbol''' is "an arbitrary or conventional sign" or "something that stands for or suggests something else" (Merriam–Webster).
A '''symbol''', in its basic sense, is a conventional representation of a
concept or quantity; i.e., an
idea,
object, concept,
quality, etc. In more psychological and philosophical terms, all concepts are symbolic in nature, and representations for these concepts are simply '''token'''
artifacts that are
allegorical to (but do not directly codify) a symbolic
meaning, or
symbolism.
Spoken
language, for example, consists of distinct auditory tokens for representing symbolic concepts (
words), arranged in an order which further suggests their meaning.
Nature of symbols
Image:Symbols of Religions.JPG List of religious symbols thumb|right|Various [[List of religious symbols|religious symbols.html" title="Meaning of religious symbols.html" title="Meaning of thumb|right|Various [[List of religious symbols|religious symbols">thumb|right|Various [[List of religious symbols|religious symbols">religious symbols.html" title="Meaning of thumb|right|Various [[List of religious symbols|religious symbols">thumb|right|Various [[List of religious symbols|religious symbols
The nature of the symbol and the process of symbolization are deeply rooted in the human nervous system. The relationship of that system to consciousness, thought and subjectivity is not understood, although there are some theories of partial explanation.
The tokenization of objects may be conscious or unconscious. Perhaps the closest mechanism to it is to be found in the conditioned reflex of behavioral science. If the reward of a given response is coupled with another stimulus (the token) repeatedly, the other stimulus acquires the same power to elicit the response as the original reward.
Putting aside all questions of the degree to which behavioral science characterizes the complex behaviors of man, conditioning certainly plays a part in symbolization. In essence the human organism emits the same operant behavior toward a placebo or token as it would toward the original. Moreover, the token may bear no resemblance in any way to the original and be of no functional use to it.
A symbol can be a
material object whose
shape or origin is related, by nature or convention, to the thing it represents: for instance, the
Christian cross cross is the main symbol of
Christianity, and the
scepter is a traditional symbol of
monarch royal power.
A symbol can also be a more or less conventional
image (i.e. an
icon), or a detail of an image, or even a
pattern or
color: for example, the olive branch in
heraldry represents peace, the
halo (religious symbol) halo is a conventional symbol of
sainthood in Christian imagery,
tartans are symbols of
Scotland Scottish clans, and the color
red is often used as a symbol for
socialism socialist movements, especially
communism.
More often, a symbol is a conventional written or printed
Sign (linguistics) sign (specifically, a
glyph), usually standing for anything other than a sound (symbols for sounds are usually called
graphemes,
letter (disambiguation) letters,
logograms,
diacritics, etc.). Thus
mathematics mathematical symbols such as π and + represent quantities and operations,
currency symbols represent
money monetary units,
chemistry chemical symbols represent elements, and so forth.
Symbols can also be immaterial entities like sounds, words and gestures. The ringing of
gongs and
bell (instrument) bells, and the banging of a judge's
gavel, often have conventional meanings in certain contexts; and
bowing (social) bowing is a common way to indicate respect. In fact, every word in a natural
language is a symbol for some concept or relationship between concepts.
A symbol is usually recognized only within some specific culture, religion, or discipline, but a few hundred symbols are now recognized internationally. See
list of common symbols and
List of symbols.
The symbolate
Many symbols are known to be such; for example, a scepter is a symbol of royal power, as any person can tell you. And yet, this same conscious symbol has an unconscious obverse: the scepter. We take it to be an object and speak of its history, evolution and uses, as though you could pick up scepters in the scepter orchard like apples in an apple orchard or gold nuggets in a gold field.
Natural objects have chemical and physical properties and behave in certain ways. What are the properties of a scepter? In trying to answer this question we encounter a kind of diffuseness or vagueness. Finally we have to admit that there are no scepters in physical actuality, and furthermore, no king, no subjects and no language.
An alien from outer space might describe a royal audience as follows. An individual homo sapiens wrapped in fibers emitting light at the high end of the visible frequency range moved a cylindrical rod against gravity, at which time other individuals ceased emitting complex sound waves. A human would just say that the king dressed in a purple robe waved his scepter to silence the multitude.
What is the difference between these two meanings?
Leslie White approached the question in an effort to define
culture cultural objects, such as a law, a constitution, a marriage ceremony. All the nouns in the story are in this category: the king, the robe, the scepter, the language, the subjects.
The essence of a cultural object is that it is a token in the process of symbolization. White therefore defined the symbolate as an object created by the act of symbolization, just as an isolate is created by the act of isolation. The scepter stands for royal power, but before this act of symbolization it did not exist. It was created by its use as a symbol. We are conscious of the symbol, but not of the symbolate.
Symbolates are real objects. The act of symbolization endows the rod with a power it did not possess previously. Rods have no effect on audiences, but scepters do. However, the power does not reside only in the rod. Its location is diffuse, some in the people, some in the king, some in the audience. Man lives in a world of diffuse powers and possibilites and therefore creates symbolates to describe and manipulate it.
Use of symbols
Human beings' ability to manipulate symbols allows them to explore the relationships between ideas, things, concepts, and qualities - far beyond the explorations of which any other species on earth is capable. The discipline of
semiotics studies symbols and symbol systems in general;
semantics is specifically concerned with the main meaning of words or other linguistic units.
Literary works are often admired for their artful use of
symbolism, i.e. the use of words, phrases and situations to evoke ideas and feelings beyond their plain interpretations; these uses are the subject of
Semiotic literary criticism literary semiotics. Religious and metaphysical writings are also known for their use of
esotericism esoteric symbolism.
Alchemy Alchemical writings made extensive use of symbols for spiritual and chemical processes (which they also saw as symbols of each other). The interpretation of dreams as symbols of one's experiences is a main feature of
Freudian psychoanalysis and
Jungian
analytical psychology.
Etymology
The word "symbol" came to the
English language, by way of
Middle English,
Old French, and
Latin, from the
Greek language Greek σύμβολον ''súmbolon'' from the root words σύμ- (''sym-'') meaning "together" and βολή ''bolḗ'' "a throw", having the approximate meaning of "to throw [a thing] together", so "sign, ticket, or contract".
Reference
* ''Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language, Second Edition, Unabridged'', W.A. Neilson, T.A. Knott, P.W. Carhart (eds.), G. & C. Merriam Company, Springfield, MA, 1950.
See also
*
Alchemy
*
Check (mark)
*
Dramatic symbol
*
Icon
*
Interpretation of dreams
*
List of common symbols
*
List of symbols
*
Logotype
*
Map-territory relation
*
Meme
*
National symbol
*
Religious symbolism
*
Phallic symbol
*
Punctuation
*
Representation
*
Semiotics
*
Sign (linguistics)
*
Symbol rate
*
Symbol grounding Symbol Grounding Problem
External links
-
Symbol search engine
-
Religious and Cultural Symbols
Category:Symbols *
af:Simbool
ca:SÃmbol
cs:Symbol
da:Symbol
de:Symbol
el:ΣÏ?μβολο
es:SÃmbolo
eo:Simbolo
fa:نماد
fr:Symbole
gl:SÃmbolo
he:סמל
mk:Симбол
nl:Symbool
nn:symbol
ja:シンボル
pl:Symbol
pt:SÃmbolo
simple:Symbol
sl:simbol
fi:Symboli
sv:Symbol
zh:符�
This is a representation of a government, military, regimental, family, or other symbol such as a
flag,
Seal (device) seal,
emblem,
coat of arms or
Crest (heraldry) crest. This symbol may be '''
copyrighted''' by its holder. As well, '''it is known that the representation of this symbol is either copyrighted by the holder of the symbol, or is available under a free license'''. There may also be other restrictions on reproduction, including but not limited to [http://www.wipo.int/treaties/en/ip/paris/trtdocs_wo020.html#P155_22332 article 6''ter'' of the Paris Convention]. It is believed that the use of '''low-resolution''' images of such symbols
*to illustrate the '''symbol in question'''
*on the [http://en.wikipedia.org English-language ], hosted on servers in the United States by the non-profit [http://wikimediafoundation.org Wikimedia Foundation],
qualifies as '''
fair use''' under
United States copyright law. '''Other uses of this image, on or elsewhere, may be
copyright infringement.''' See
:Fair use.
'''To the uploader''': please add a detailed ''fair use rationale'' for each use, as described on
:Image description page, as well as the '''source''' of the work and copyright information. As well, if this image is available under a free license, please also add the appropriate
:Image copyright tags#Free_licenses free licence tag.
Category:Fair use symbols {{PAGENAME}}Category:Non-free image copyright tags
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