semicolon
punctuation mark typically used to separate clauses or list items, also used as a question mark in some languages
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Summary
semicolon is an Unicode character[1]. semicolon ranks in the top 3% of unicode character entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (7,383 views/month).[2]
Key Facts
- Discoverer or inventor: Aldus Manutius[3]
- Subclass of: punctuation mark[4]
- Part of: emoticon[5]
- Has use: delimiter[6], question[7], program comment[8], covariant derivative[9]
- Commons category: Semicolons[10]
- Unicode character: ;[11]
- Time of discovery or invention: 1494[12]
- Depicted by: ；[13], ﹔[14], ︔[15]
- Described by source: Meyers Konversations-Lexikon, 4th edition (1885–1890)[16]
- Different from: ; (U+037E)[17]
- Homoglyph: ; (U+037E)[18], ؛[19], ⁏[20]
- Code: -.-.-.[21]
- Unicode code point: 003B[22]
- HTML entity: ;[23], ;[24], ;[25]
- Unicode block: Basic Latin[26]
- Unicode character name: SEMICOLON[27]
Why It Matters
semicolon has Wikipedia articles in 27 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.[28] semicolon is known by 67 alternative names across languages and contexts.[29]