What Is The Therian Symbol (and Where Does It Come From)?

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Learn about the therian symbol’s meanings and ways to use it

Reviewed by Jason Zuk

Last Updated: December 20, 2024 Fact Checked

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Therian Symbol Meaning & Origin

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Therian Emojis

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About Therians

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FAQs

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Video

Have you seen the therian symbol (an overlapping variation of ΘΔ) and wondered what it means? We’ll break down the origin, meanings, and uses of this recent social media phenomenon. Along the way, you’ll learn more about who uses the symbol and what it means to them personally.

What does the Therian symbol mean?

The therian symbol features a Theta Θ and Delta Δ symbol overlapping each other. The symbol is used by the therian community, which is made up of people that identify as specific non-human beings—usually animals—like a wolf, bear, or cat.

Section 1 of 4:

Therian Symbol Meaning & Origin

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The therian symbol is a Greek Theta Θ and Delta Δ interlocked. The symbol is used by the therian community, which is made up of people who identify as therians. A therian identifies as a particular non-human being, usually some kind of animal, like a dog, bird, or fox. The Greek Theta (Θ) means “wild animal” and the Greek Delta (Δ) symbolizes change. ^{[1]
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- The symbol represents how a person identifying as a therian slips into animal-like behavior and thinking. It originated in 2003 on the Werelist online forums.

Section 2 of 4:

Therian Symbol Emojis

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The therian symbol emoji is used by therians on social media. People use the therian symbol as an emoji on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, or X so others will recognize that they identify as therian. It's a sign of solidarity among the small but proud therian community online.^{[2]
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- There is no interlocking therian symbol to type as text, so to use the therian symbol on social media, you can copy & paste the Greek Theta followed by the Greek Delta (ΘΔ).^{[3]
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Therians use emojis depicting the animal they identify as. They use specific animal emojis more often than the therian symbol itself.^{[4]
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Research source}Popular therian emojis use whatever animal emoji you identify as, followed by a paw print emoji, a question mark emoji, or a dizzy emoji.
- For example, the emoji combi 🐺🐾 would indicate the person identifies as a wolf. The combo 🦊❓stands for a fox, and the combo 🐻💫 stands for a bear.

Section 3 of 4:

What does it mean to be a therian?

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Therians feel spiritually and/or psychologically connected to a specific animal. Psychologically, they often connect to a certain animal as a child and develop into full-grown therians as adults. The type of animal a therian identifies as is called a theriotype. They feel that their chosen animal represents their inner self. Therians don’t always express this identification outwardly but can exhibit animal-like behaviors through a “shift,” when they mentally or spiritually transform into their animal.^{[5]
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- Therians often cite past lives or reincarnation beliefs as the origin of who they are spiritually.
- Therians differ from otherkins, who identify not with an animal, but with a mythical or fantasy-based being.^{[6]
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  - Standard therians identify as a single non-human animal.^{[7]
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  - Polytherians identify as more than one theriotype. For example, they may identify as a rabbit and a mouse at the same time.
  - Cladotherians identify with an entire genus instead of a single species, like a cat, not a specific cat species.
  - Suntherians experience minor shifts in personality and identify more as a human than an animal.
  - Contherians constantly feel like their inner animal self without any mental shifts.
  - Paleotherians identify with an extinct species of animal, like a wooly mammoth or a dodo bird.^{[8]
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Section 4 of 4:

Therian Symbol FAQs

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Signs you may be a therian include feeling a deep connection to a specific animal, often since childhood. You may experience a shift into animal-like behavior or react in an animalistic way, by growling or snarling. Feeling at home when you embody your therianthrope means you may be a therian. Those in the therian community believe being a therian is not a choice.
Many therians feel that you don’t choose to be a therian, but you do choose to be a furry. Furries identify with the outer physical elements of an animal (and often express themselves more in this way), while therians identify with the inner qualities of that animal. They may or may not express themselves as their therianthrope.^{[9]
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Some therians practice a sport called quadrobics, which involves walking or running on all fours like an animal. It can help therians connect more to their inner animal but isn’t a requirement for all therians and remains an individual choice.^{[10]
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