[ih] Fwd: Reporter query on the history of greater-than in quoted replies

[Dave Crocker]

Hi folks.

Just got this query.  I don't have any clear memory of how the usage got 
started.  Do any of you?

d/

-------- Forwarded Message --------
Subject: Reporter query on the history of greater-than in quoted replies
Date: Mon,  2 Jan 2017 12:43:04 -0800
From: Glenn Fleishman <glenn at glennf.com>

...
I'm a reporter with a deep background in typography, and recently wrote 
this piece about quotation marks (the curly kind) for The Atlantic: 
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2016/12/quotation-mark-wars/511766/

In researching that story, I found that the > mark was the original 
quotation mark — it dates back about two thousand years in that usage. 
This fascinated me, because of how it was revived in email and forums.

I read early RFCs and other documents, and was unable to find the origin 
of > for quoting a reply.
...


-- 

   Dave Crocker
   Brandenburg InternetWorking
   bbiw.net