The uppercase letter alpha is not generally used as a symbol because it tends to

be rendered identically to the uppercase Latin A.

Math and science
Main article: Alpha (disambiguation)
The letter alpha represents various concepts in physics and chemistry, including
alpha radiation, angular acceleration, alpha particles and alpha carbon. Alpha
also stands for thermal expansion coefficient of a compound in physical chemistr
y. It is also commonly used in mathematics in algebraic solutions representing q
uantities such as angles. Furthermore, in mathematics, the letter alpha is used
to denote the area underneath a normal curve in statistics when finding figures
such as the null and alternative hypotheses. In zoology, is used to name the dom
inant individual in a wolf or dog pack.
History and symbolism
Etymology
Alpha was derived from aleph, which in Phoenician means "ox".[2]
According to Etymologicum Magnum, alpha was derived from álpho (??f?) "to invent":
thus alpha is the "first invented letter".[3] The closest attested words are al
pháno (a?f???) I yield, produce"[4] and the noun derived from it, alphe (a?f?) "pr
oduce, gain".[5]
Homer
The Homeric word alphesíboios[6][7] is associated with both the root alph- and "ox
". It is derived from alpháno[4] "to yield", "earn" and boûs "ox",[8] hence alphesíboi
os means "bringing in" or "acquiring oxen".
Plutarch
Plutarch in Moralia,[9] presents a discussion on why the letter alpha stands fir
st in the alphabet. Ammonius asks Plutarch what he, being a Boeotian, thinks of
Cadmus, the Phoenician who reputedly settled in Thebes and introduced the alphab
et to Greece, placing alpha first because it is the Phoenician name for ox which
, unlike Hesiod,[10] the Phoenicians considered not the second or third, but the
first of all necessities.
"Nothing at all" Plutarch replied. He then added that he would rather be assiste
d by Lamprias, his own grandfather, than by Dionysus' grandfather, i.e. Cadmus.
For Lamprias had said that the first articulate sound made is "alpha", because i
t is very plain and simple the air coming off the mouth does not require any mot
ion of the tongue and therefore this is the first sound that children make.
According to Plutarch's natural order of attribution of the vowels to the planet
s, alpha was connected with the Moon. Oxen were also associated with the Moon in
both early Sumerian and Egyptian religious symbolism, possibly due to the cresc
ent shape of their horns.
Alpha and Omega
Alpha, both as a symbol and term, is used to refer to or describe a variety of t
hings, including the first or most significant occurrence of something. The New
Testament has God declaring himself to be the "Alpha and Omega, the beginning an
d the end, the first and the last." (Revelation 22:13, KJV, and see also 1:8).
Runes
In the Runic alphabet of the Elder Futhark in received shamanic oral lore tradit
ions from Scandinavia, the alphabet is a cycle rather than a linear progression
and Ur commences the cycle that Fe closes and both are cattle. This is a correla
te to Alpha and Omega.[11]