Adlam Small Letter Ra

It writes the r sound in Adlam. Fula, also called Fulani, includes varieties such as Fulfulde and Pular. In Adlam spelling, 𞤪 is the lowercase consonant represented by r in a Latin-letter transcription. Some speakers pronounce it with a quick tap of the tongue tip; the exact sound can vary by speaker and context.

Adlam’s documented beginnings are in Guinea in 1989, when brothers Ibrahima and Abdoulaye Barry developed an alphabet for Fula. Fula had also been written with adapted Arabic letters and with varying Latin conventions. Adlam aimed to fit the language more directly, and its letters were refined through testing and community feedback before the script spread through Fula communities and schools.

𞤪 belongs to the Adlam alphabet. Although Arabic-based writing was one earlier way to write Fula, this letter is not an Arabic character; Adlam’s letterforms were developed largely for its own script.

Why can 𞤪 look different?

Its font and neighboring letters shape its appearance. Adlam runs right to left and can use cursive joining, so 𞤪 may connect to nearby letters. Unjoined forms also appear in titles and teaching materials; the letter and its value stay the same.

Set the surrounding text direction to right to left. A box or replacement mark means the font cannot display this glyph; a separate shape may reflect an unjoined font or writing style. Neither display difference makes it a different letter.