sexkantiga

Sexkantiga is the Swedish term for hexagonal, describing objects or figures that have six sides or six angles. The root is sex- (six) and kant/angle, with the adjectival suffix -iga.

In geometry, a hexagon has six sides. The sum of interior angles is 720 degrees. A convex hexagon has all interior angles less than 180 degrees. A regular hexagon has six equal sides and six equal angles, with each interior angle measuring 120 degrees. The area of a regular hexagon with side length a is (3√3/2) a^2, and its perimeter is 6a. Hexagons can also be irregular, having varying side lengths or angles, including concave variants.

Hexagonal tilings are notable for their efficiency in covering a plane. Regular hexagons tessellate the plane without gaps when used in a lattice, a pattern observed in natural structures such as honeycombs and in various design and architectural motifs. Hexagonal symmetry also appears in crystallography and molecular chemistry; the benzene ring, for example, is a planar hexagonal arrangement of carbon atoms.

Natural and man-made examples extend from beehives and basalt columns to computer graphics and floor tilings. The term sexkantiga can describe anything possessing six sides or six angles, from geometric figures to hexagonal components in materials and design. See also hexagon, hexagonal tiling, and hexagonal crystal systems.