# Cross was a symbol of unity in pre-christian era

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cross-was-a-symbol-of-unity-in-pre-christian-era/499317>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [June 10, 2009, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cross-was-a-symbol-of-unity-in-pre-christian-era/499317 "2009-06-10T11:42:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Indian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@Indian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indian)\
**Post date:** [June 10, 2009, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cross-was-a-symbol-of-unity-in-pre-christian-era/499317/1 "2009-06-10T11:42:35Z")

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From Dex’s [report](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1801/whats-the-origin-of-keeping-your-fingers-crossed) on " keeping the fingers crossed " .

What is the origin of cross ? I remember reading that it originated from swastika .

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**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\
**Post date:** [June 10, 2009, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cross-was-a-symbol-of-unity-in-pre-christian-era/499317/2 "2009-06-10T12:57:25Z")

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Mate, there are no simple symbols which have not been used by comebody somewhen. Neither the cross nor the swastika were that common in the pre-christian era, and the swastika has always been around but never super-common since, either. As symbols, such simple patterns probably go back to long before written records.

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**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\
**Post date:** [June 10, 2009, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cross-was-a-symbol-of-unity-in-pre-christian-era/499317/3 "2009-06-10T22:26:56Z")

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> [@indian](#):
>
> From Dex’s [report](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1801/whats-the-origin-of-keeping-your-fingers-crossed) on “keeping the fingers crossed”.
> 
> What is the origin of cross? I remember reading that it originated from swastika.

I don’t understand your question. The column you quote clearly gives an answer for the crossed-fingers gesture. If you mean the simple shape of the cross, in Euclidean geometry, any two lines in a plane that are not parallel will inevitably intersect. Any fence is made of many crosses. Just sitting here I can see a dozen crosses in the walls and the furniture around me. Trying to derive the cross from the swastika is like trying to derive the wheelbarrow from the bicycle.

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**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\
**Post date:** [June 11, 2009, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cross-was-a-symbol-of-unity-in-pre-christian-era/499317/4 "2009-06-11T20:33:28Z")

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[nostalgia]Wow, that was a long time ago in internet terms. Back in those days, we could write a Staff Report with only one major source. Nowadays, we’d reject that question because it’s answered firmly elsewhere, and we’d just provide a link. We’ve come a long way, babe.[/nostalgia]