The Double Dagger Symbol (‡): Meaning, Origin, and Usage
The double dagger (‡), also known as a diesis, is a typographical symbol primarily used to indicate a footnote. As the second footnote marker in traditional English publishing, it immediately follows the standard dagger (†). Originally developed by early scribes and printers, this symbol serves as a crucial navigational tool in texts to point readers toward secondary information, references, or citations.
The double dagger traces its roots back to the obelus, a symbol used by ancient Greek scholars to mark questionable or spurious passages in manuscripts. Over centuries of manuscript copying and the eventual advent of the printing press, the obelus evolved into the dagger and the double dagger. Typesetters adopted these symbols to keep pages clean and organized, establishing a standard hierarchy for footnotes: asterisk (*), dagger (†), double dagger (‡), section (§), parallels (||), and paragraph (¶).
Beyond classic typography, the double dagger pops up in several specialized fields. In chemistry, a double dagger placed as a superscript indicates a transition state in a chemical reaction. In paleontology and biology, while a single dagger next to a species name means it is extinct, the double dagger occasionally highlights specific taxonomic ranks or additional historical notes depending on the style guide. On the internet, you rarely see the double dagger in standard programming, but editors use it in wiki markup or digital text formatting to maintain traditional citation styles.
In the digital realm, the double dagger is formally known as DOUBLE DAGGER in the Unicode Standard. It lives in the General Punctuation block at code point U+2021.
Typing the double dagger depends on your operating system. On macOS, simply press Option + Shift + 7. On Windows, use the Alt code by holding down Alt and typing 0135 on your numeric keypad. If you are writing in HTML, insert it using the entity reference ‡ (make sure the 'D' is capitalized, as a lowercase 'd' produces a single dagger). For mobile users, you usually need to copy and paste the symbol, as standard iOS and Android keyboards do not feature it natively.
The closest relative to the double dagger is the single dagger (†) (U+2020). While the single dagger acts as the primary marker for footnotes, the double dagger steps in when you need a second note on the same page. Other related reference marks include the asterisk (*) and the section sign (§). Unlike those everyday symbols, the double dagger retains a distinctly vintage, scholarly aesthetic.