Z
Support for Russian aggression
At the beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, some Russians began using a symbol that looks like "Z" to show support for the aggression. There is no clear origin for where the Z symbol came from. Some believe it stands for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, while others believe it stands for "Zapad," which means west and refers to where soldiers were stationed.
Despite its unclear origin, the Russian defense ministry utilized it with "V" in one of its Instagram posts. In the post, the Z stood for "Za pobedu" ("for victory"), and the V stood for "power of truth."
How are Russians using the Z symbol?
As the invasion progressed, many Russians have rallied around the symbol, using it on social media, painting it on their cars, placing it on their gymnastics uniform, and even lining up in Z-formation (propaganda really works). The symbol has also become a way to intimidate those who oppose Russian aggression, such as Russian protestors or citizens from different countries. In addition, some critics have pointed out the similarities of its use with how the Nazis used the swastika.
NOTE: The symbol is not actually the same Z used in the English alphabet since there is no Z in the Cyrillic Russian alphabet (their "z" sound comes from a letter that appears similar to the number 3).
Example
Can you score under par in this golf terms quiz?
Z is an abbreviation for "zero" that is typically used online. It reduces the word to just one character, but you could argue that "0" would be better, and you're probably right.
Since "Z" could stand for many other things besides "zero", it's not a very good abbreviation and you should probably refrain from using it. And for some "Zorro" enthusiasts, it would be ultra confusing since the masked man often signed his name with just a "Z".