A Zirkel (German for "circle", as in "circle of friends") is a

monogram A monogram is a motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol. Monograms are often made by combining the initials of an individual or a company, used as recognizable symbols or logos. A series o ...

used in European student societies in countries such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Hungary, Latvia, Estonia (

Studentenverbindung (; often referred to as Verbindung) is the umbrella term for many different kinds of fraternity-type associations in German-speaking countries, including Corps, , , , and Catholic fraternities. Worldwide, there are over 1,600 , about a thousa ...

en). __TOC__

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A ''Zirkel'' consists of intertwined lines, followed by an exclamation mark if the society is still active. The lines mostly show the first letters of the name of the ''Studentenverbindung'' and / or the letters v,c,f or e,f,v. Examples: File:Zirkel der Hubertia Freiburg.jpg, Zirkel of '' Corps Hubertia Freiburg'' in

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

, Germany File:Zirkel_1927.JPG, Zirkel of ' in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, Germany File:Zirkel of Corps Altsachsen Dresden.png, Zirkel of '' Corps Altsachsen'' in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

, Germany File:Zirkel_Gothia.jpg, Zirkel of ' in

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...

, Austria File:Zirkel_stpauli_jena.svg, Zirkel of ' in

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a popu ...

, Germany File:Zirkel_Ascania_Köln.png, Zirkel of ' in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

, Germany File:Zirkel_Arminia_Leipzig.tif, Zirkel of '' '' in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...

, Germany File:Zirkel der Landsmannschaft Schottland zu Tübingen.png, Zirkel of '' Landsmannschaft Schottland'' in

Tübingen Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in thr ...

, Germany File:Htbzirkel2016.jpg, Zirkel of '' '' in

, Germany File:Zirkel Moeder Zuid-Oost-Vlaamse.png, Zirkel of ' (de ZOV) in

Leuven Leuven (, ) or Louvain (, , ; german: link=no, Löwen ) is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the historic ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Meaning of v-c-f: * ''Vivant fratres coniuncti'' ("the conjunct brothers should live")Peter Krause: ''O alte Burschenherrlichkeit - Die Studenten und ihr Brauchtum'', Graz, Wien, Köln 1979, page 78, 79 or * ''Vivat circulus fratrum'' ("the circle of brothers should live") or * ''Vivat, crescat, floreat'' ("live, grow, flourish").Paulgerhard Gladen: ''Gaudeamus igitur - Die studentischen Verbindungen einst und jetzt'', Köln 2001, page 31 Meaning of e-f-v: * ''Ehre, Freiheit, Vaterland'' ("Honour, Liberty, Fatherland").

Usage

The members of the ''Studentenverbindung'' use the ''Zirkel'' as sign on

Couleur Couleur (from French, meaning ''colour'' in English language, English) is the expression used in Central European ''Studentenverbindungen'' for the various headgear and distinctive ribbons worn by members of these student societies. There are thr ...

or other things e.g. beer glasses etc. If a member signs in affairs of its ''Studentenverbindung'' it places the ''Zirkel'' after its signature. This use is similar to the use of

postnominals Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters or simply post-nominals, are letters placed after a person's name to indicate that the individual holds a position, academic degree, accreditation, ...

in Anglo-Saxon countries. Examples: File:Strassencerevis Rhen Sil.jpg, ''Straßencerevis'' with embroidered ''Zirkel'' and oak leaves File:AKV Alemannia Alemannkrug 1.JPG, beer mug and ''Zipfel'' with ''Zirkel'' File:Corps Hubertia Freiburg - Crest on House with iron goggles.png, Crest of the fraternity Corps Hubertia Freiburg with a ''Zirkel'' in the upper right. This crest is a wall display on the outside of a fraternity house. File:Wappen des Corps Altsachsen Dresden.png, The center of the official fraternity crest of Corps Altsachsen Dresden is marked with a ''Zirkel''. File:Jordania Cigarette Case.jpg, Cigarette case with the ''Zirkel'' of a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Studentenverbindung from Basel, in the

Jewish Museum of Switzerland The Jewish Museum of Switzerland in Basel provides an overview of the religious and everyday history of the Jews in Basel and Switzerland using objects of ritual, art and everyday culture from Middle Ages, the Middle Ages to the present. Histo ...

’s collection.

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References

Further reading