Bamum Letter Ka

It writes the Bamum syllable “ka.”

In the modern A-ka-u-ku syllabary—a writing system whose signs represent syllables—ꚡ helps spell Bamum words.

How did Bamum writing change?

Bamum writing evolved through successive redesigns into a syllabary.

The script developed between 1896 and 1910, chiefly under King Ibrahim Njoya. Around 1897, its earliest documented form used hundreds of signs for objects and actions, serving more as a memory aid than as a direct way to write speech.

Njoya’s court developed it to preserve Bamum knowledge and support court life. The palace used Bamum writing for teaching, chronicles, official records, law, maps, medicine, and correspondence; as colonial writing systems spread, schools taught the Bamum language and history through their own script.

By 1910, A-ka-u-ku was the modern Phase G syllabary. A 2009 study reports similarities between Bamum and neighboring Bagam (Eghap) writing and discusses the possibility that some Bagam phonetic signs were borrowed from Bamum.

How do I type ꚡ?

Use a Bamum keyboard or Unicode input method.

As of 2026, Learn Bamum lists a downloadable Windows keyboard. A Unicode input method that accepts code points can enter U+A6A1.

If ꚡ appears as a box or missing-glyph mark, the font or app may lack Bamum coverage.