The letter听B听was part of the Phoenician alphabet more than 3000 years ago in 1000 BCE. At that time, the letter was called听beth听and looked a little different, but it made the sound of听b听and was second in the alphabet.
The shape of the letter resembled the floor plan of a house, and the word听beth听meant “house.” This is pictured below. In Hebrew, the letter was called听beth,听产别迟, or听bayt听which also means “house.”
In the Greek alphabet, the letter took on the name听beta, and the word听beta听has stuck around in English to refer to the second in any series. In astronomy, the second brightest star in a constellation assumes this name, as in听Beta Centauri听辞谤听Beta Tauri. In the technology industry,听beta听frequently refers to the version of a program or application shown to a small group of users before it’s available to the wider public. Rolling out this version is called听产别迟a testing.
Today, as in Ancient Greece, the letter听B听is the perennial number two:听Plan B,听产-尘辞惫颈别,听b-roll, etc.听Plan B听entered English in the mid-1800s to refer to the second in a series of plans, but over time the meaning shifted to describe an alternative plan or strategy.听Plan A听is basically nonexistent in contemporary English.听Plan B听also refers to a trademarked form of an emergency contraception medication.听B-movies听were originally the second film in a double feature, though the term has come to apply more broadly to low-budget films.听B-roll听is an film-industry term for supplemental footage commonly used in television shows and documentary films that sets the scene and can be accompanied with any voice-over or background music.
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