What Does the Symbol of Virgo Mean?
Virgo is considered to govern from August 23 to September 22.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Palm Sunday is celebrated by Christian communities on the Sunday before Easter.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Gemini is the third sign of the zodiac, said to govern between May 21 and June 21.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.This is the philosopher who said “God is dead.”Media Editor: Lauren Sims
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Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.Learn more about the definition, history, and uses of constellations.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.The symbols of the zodiac likely originated around the Middle Ages.
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© Open University (A Britannica Publishing Partner)A discussion of how astrology differs from astronomy.
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© Open University (A Britannica Publishing Partner)Learn about Karl Marx's opposition to religion.
News •
Starwatch: Catch the striking trifecta of Venus, the moon and Spica at break of dawn
• Nov. 2, 2026, 1:00 AM ET (The Guardian)
Transcript
Look into the night sky without a telescope and you may think Virgo looks something like a box tilted on its side, located between Leo the lion and the small diamond of Libra.
Its brightest star is the bluish Spica, the 15th brightest in the sky, and the constellation—which allegedly resembles a woman with angel’s wings—contains the nearest large cluster of galaxies to Earth.
If you’re looking at your horoscope instead of the sky, you’ll find Virgo to be the sixth sign of the zodiac, said to govern from about August 23 to about September 22.
Unlike most other zodiac signs, there’s no animal representative here. Virgo is depicted as a young woman carrying a sheaf of wheat, an image that can be interpreted as a fertility goddess (such as the Babylonian and Assyrian Ishtar, goddess of war and sex)vor a harvest maiden (such as Greek myth’s Persephone, whose visits to earth from the underworld usher in the changing of the seasons).
As an earth sign, Virgos are typically considered to be grounded, logical, and hardworking—which may be why you might find fewer famous Virgos on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and more (figuratively) “on the ground”: social justice activists Fred Hampton and Marsha P. Johnson and politician Bernie Sanders were all born under the influence of Virgo.
Its brightest star is the bluish Spica, the 15th brightest in the sky, and the constellation—which allegedly resembles a woman with angel’s wings—contains the nearest large cluster of galaxies to Earth.
If you’re looking at your horoscope instead of the sky, you’ll find Virgo to be the sixth sign of the zodiac, said to govern from about August 23 to about September 22.
Unlike most other zodiac signs, there’s no animal representative here. Virgo is depicted as a young woman carrying a sheaf of wheat, an image that can be interpreted as a fertility goddess (such as the Babylonian and Assyrian Ishtar, goddess of war and sex)vor a harvest maiden (such as Greek myth’s Persephone, whose visits to earth from the underworld usher in the changing of the seasons).
As an earth sign, Virgos are typically considered to be grounded, logical, and hardworking—which may be why you might find fewer famous Virgos on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and more (figuratively) “on the ground”: social justice activists Fred Hampton and Marsha P. Johnson and politician Bernie Sanders were all born under the influence of Virgo.
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