From Swastika to Z to V, some well-liked symbols throughout warfare and peace

From a letter to a army image to an indication of assist for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — “Z [has become] the new sign of war. It’s the new Swastika.”

Swastika, believed to be an emblem of divinity and spirituality in Indic religions, is now recognised because the image of Hitler’s Nazi Germany. Well, it was in Thirties. Today, in 2022, the refrain has mounted over the letter ‘Z’ which is utilized by Russia as its army image amid its warfare in opposition to Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin introduced a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24. With an purpose to “demilitarise and denazify” Ukraine, Russian forces marched ahead to seize Ukrainian cities.

Within moments, tons of of Russian tanks have been seen on Ukrainian streets. As heart-wrenching photos and movies from the war-torn nation began going viral, netizens took no time to note the image ‘Z’ on these tanks.

A Russian troop walks subsequent to an armoured car with image “Z” painted on its facet. (Photo: Reuters)

As a letter, Z doesn’t exist within the Cyrillic Russian alphabet. However, a letter resembling determine 3 represents the “z” sound, a report mentioned.

In no time, ‘Z’ turned the present warfare image. While some wore T-shirts with ‘Z’ printed on it to point out their assist to Russia, those that backed the war-hit Ukraine, used the Ukrainian flag to point out their assist.

Meanwhile, a number of analysts got here up with theories to decode the usage of ‘Z’ by Russians.

‘Z’ shouldn’t be solely the letter within the English Alphabet that turned an emblem of assist on the time of warfare. As talked about earlier on this article, the Swastika was one. And the opposite was ‘Q’.

‘Q’

Back in 2021, it was election time within the United States. As all eyes have been on the ballot outcomes, Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol constructing to protest the end result of the November 3 presidential election.

During this time, the Latin alphabet – Q – turned part of far-right politics within the US (and overseas) by way of the conspiracy concept QAnon.

Qanon activists rally to point out their assist for Fox News exterior their headquarters within the Manhattan borough of New York City on November 2, 2020 [Photo: Reuters]

The QAnon conspiracy concept is believed to be laced with anti-Semitism.

According to a report, “‘Q’ represents the purported high-ranking government official who shares inside information with QAnon followers through cryptic posts on fringe websites.”

THE PEACE SIGN

It is among the peace symbols designed for the British nuclear disarmament motion by Gerald Holtom, an artist and engineer. It is internationally recognised and often known as the peace image, the CND image.

Today, this image is broadly seen being utilized by protestors agitating in favour of Ukraine and demanding Russia to withdraw its forces and finish the warfare.

V: SYMBOL OF VICTORY

The ‘V’ signal initially was used to sign victory by Allied nations throughout World War II. The gesture, which is usually used right this moment, was as soon as utilized by then UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill who made the V for Victory hand gesture in one of many defining photos of defiance through the battle.