Fylfy Fractals

An equilateral triangle is a rep-tile, because it can be tiled completely with smaller copies of itself. Here it is as a rep-4 rep-tile, tiled with four smaller copies of itself:

Equilateral triangle as rep-4 rep-tile


If you divide and discard one of the sub-copies, then carry on dividing-and-discarding with the sub-copies and sub-sub-copies and sub-sub-sub-copies, you get the fractal seen below. Alas, it’s not a very attractive or interesting fractal:

Divide-and-discard fractal stage #1


Stage #2


Stage #3


Stage #4


Stage #5


Stage #6


Stage #7


Stage #8


Stage #9


Divide-and-discard fractal (animated)


You can create more attractive and interesting fractals by rotating the sub-triangles clockwise or anticlockwise. Here are some examples:









Now try dividing a square into four right triangles, then turning each of the four triangles into a divide-and-discard fractal. The resulting four-fractal shape is variously called a swastika, a gammadion, a cross cramponnée, a Hakenkreuz and a fylfot. I’m calling it a fylfy fractal:

Divide-and-discard fractals in the four triangles of a divided square stage #1


Fylfy fractal #2


Fylfy fractal #3


Fylfy fractal #4


Fylfy fractal #5


Fylfy fractal #6


Fylfy fractal #7


Fylfy fractal #8


Fylfy fractal (animated)


Finally, you can adjust the fylfy fractals so that each point in the square becomes the equivalent point in a circle:



















Trifylfots

Here’s a simple fractal created by dividing an equilateral triangle into smaller equilateral triangles, then discarding (and rotating) some of those sub-triangles, then doing the same to the sub-triangles:

Fractangle (triangle-fractal) (stage 1)


Fractangle #2


Fractangle #3


Fractangle #4


Fractangle #5


Fractangle #6


Fractangle #7


Fractangle #8


Fractangle #9


Fractangle (animated)


I’ve used the same fractangle to create this shape, which is variously known as a swastika (from Sanskrit svasti, “good luck, well-being”), a gammadion (four Greek Γs arranged in a circle) or a fylfot (from the shape being used to “fill the foot” of a stained glass window in Christian churches):

Trifylfot


Because it’s a fylfot created ultimately from a triangle, I’m calling it a trifylfot (TRIFF-ill-fot). Here’s how you make it:

Trifylfot (stage 1)


Trifylfot #2


Trifylfot #3


Trifylfot #4


Trifylfot #5


Trifylfot #6


Trifylfot #7


Trifylfot #8


Trifylfot #9


Trifylfot (animated)


And here are more trifylfots created from various forms of fractangle:













































Elsewhere other-accessible

Fractangular Frolics — more on fractals from triangles