During their existence, playing cards have traveled all over the world, starting from their homeland - China and ending with Spain, and then all of Europe. And the familiar icons appeared on them for a reason; each is associated with an unusual story. 
We must understand that due to the passage of time, some explanations may seem implausible. But it is no longer possible to prove whether this or that is true or false. 
By the way, there is an interesting theory, according to which the signs were invented by adherents of Christianity at a time when Christians were persecuted in ancient times. In accordance with it, clubs are the cross on which the Savior was crucified, spades are a symbol of the spear that pierced the heart of Christ. The diamonds represent the stone where the body was placed, and the hearts, which were previously depicted as cups, represent the Grail. 
But this version is most likely romanticized. Because the church, in principle, is categorically against gambling. On a more prosaic level, peaks are, in fact, peaks. I mean weapons. And in European languages - French, Spanish, Italian, the word is written and pronounced approximately the same: pique, picas picche. 
Clubs or our crosses really look like a cross. But this is our interpretation, since initially the icon was not a stylized cross, but a clover leaf. And trèfle in French is clover. 
In English, the name of this suit is diamonds, that is, diamonds. Even without particularly imagining, you can see the similarity of the card suit of diamonds with a crystal. But the fact is that from the Spaniards, who were the first Europeans to master cards, the game came to Germany, then to France. And only the British adopted it from the French. And in the German deck the suit was called “bells”. 
As for the suit of hearts, there was an unexpected and interesting story with it. The thing is, the name is almost literal. I mean, worms are worms. Until the 8th century, the suit was called kera, from the French coeur (heart). But then it was renamed to hearts according to its color (scarlet - red). 
Cochineal
And the verb “worm” - to paint red actually came from the word “worm”. By which was meant not a worm in principle, but one specific one. More precisely, not even a worm, but an aphid - cochineal or cochineal mealybug - an insect used to produce the red dye carmine. 
There are other explanations. For example, the knightly version, symbolizing the vestments - a spear (spades), a sword (clubs), a shield (hearts) and a coat of arms (diamonds). And the Indian one, according to which suits are classes.
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