What is the name of the symbol @ called in English?

In English, the symbol @ is called the “at sign,” also commonly described as the “at symbol.” Its familiar role in an email address means that one user or mailbox is located at a particular domain, as in [email protected].

The character was used commercially before the internet, where it meant “at a rate of” or “at the price of,” such as 7 widgets @ £2 each. Its exact origin is uncertain, but related forms appear in historical commercial writing. In Spanish and Portuguese, the symbol is also associated with arroba, a traditional unit of weight or volume.

Computer programmer Ray Tomlinson is credited with choosing @ for email addresses in 1971 because it was available on keyboards and clearly separated the user from the host computer. Today it also introduces usernames and mentions on many social platforms. An asterisk is *, a hashtag is usually #, and an ampersand is &—three different symbols with different histories and uses.