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Circle mark
Symbol used in Japan for affirmation
Symbol used in Japan for affirmation
** redirects here. For similar symbols, see circle symbol (disambiguation)#Unicode
A circle mark ("◯") is often used in East Asia to express affirmation. Its use is similar to that of the checkmark ("✓") in the Western world. Its opposite is the X mark ("✗" or "×").
The symbol's names and meanings vary across cultures. In Japanese it is called marujirushi (丸印) or maru (丸) and expresses affirmation. In Korean it is called ko () and expresses affirmation.
Usage in Japan
Japan interprets the symbol as an affirmation.
Japan employs a number of related symbols (◎ ○ △ ×) in a system that expresses degrees of affirmation. A bullseye "◎" (nijūmaru; 二重丸) is often used for "excellent", the circle is a plain affirmation, the triangle "△" (sankaku; 三角) means "so-so" or "partially applicable", and the "×" expresses disagreement. This system is widely known in Japan, and thus often used without explanation. Ad-hoc adjustments are usually explained.
HanamaruThe hanamaru () is a variant of the O mark. It is typically drawn as a spiral surrounded by rounded flower petals, suggesting a flower. It is frequently used in praising or complimenting children, and the motif often appears in children's characters and logos. The hanamaru is frequently written on tests if a student has achieved full marks or an otherwise outstanding result. It is sometimes used in place of an O mark in grading written response problems if a student's answer is especially good. Some teachers add rotations to the spiral for exceptional answers.
Two circles ◯◯ (marumaru) are often used as a placeholder - either because a variety of words, names or numbers could be used in that position, or because of censorship.
Unicode
Unicode provides various related symbols, including:
| Symbol | Unicode code point (hex) | Name | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ○ | ||||
| ◎ | ||||
| ● | ||||
| ◯ | ||||
has both text and emoji presentations, as shown in the table. It defaults to emoji presentation.
White Flower emoji The emoji looks similar to hanamaru, although it represents a rubber stamp commonly used to grade students' written answers and is not usually recognized as hanamaru.
References
References
- (2012-02-10). "The Japanese Side of the PlayStation Button Confusion".
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
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