Many languages had no name for the “@” sign (or “commercial at”) before the arrival of email.
A Natural History of the @ Sign collects the metaphors used to describe @ in 33 languages, ranging from “elephant’s trunk” (Afrikaans) to “monkey” (Polish) to “strudel” (Hebrew) to “little mouse” (Mandarin Chinese) to “wiggling worm-like character” (Thai). Oddly intriguing.
[...] The “@ sign” has enjoyed a curious and interesting history as it spread to cultures that never used it before the invention of email. [...]
[...] An “@” icon then appears in your menubar with a drop down menu that will list all your contacts by a variety of categories: [...]