Gender Masculine & Feminine
Usage Various
Scripts 零(Japanese Kanji) ゼロ(Japanese Katakana)
Other Forms FormsRei (Japanese)
Meaning & History
Derived from the Italian zero itself from Medieval Latin zèphyrum, Arabic صفر (ṣifr) and Sanskrit शून्य (śūnyá), ultimately meaning "empty".In Japan the same sound and meaning was given to the kanji 零 (rei), probably after the contact with Western cultures. Zero has been used for some manga and anime characters.