Bamum letter Phase-E Saa

It is the letter Saa from Phase E, an older stage of Bamum writing.

Bamum writing began in 1896 under King Ibrahim Njoya. Its early system used picture-like and word signs as a memory aid; later revisions simplified the signs and moved toward syllabic writing, where each sign represents a syllable. Phase E developed around 1907–1908 and was used for a Bible translation. The script also served administration, education and record-keeping.

Why is 𖦅 historical, not modern?

Phase E is historical; modern Bamum uses Phase G.

Phase A was the earliest form; Phases B–F came before the later Phase G syllabary. The Unicode Standard describes characters from this older orthography as archaic and outside modern writing; they belong mainly to historical and language study.

In one older spelling, 𖦅 appears before the distinct Phase-D sign Mbaa Seven: together they spell samba, “7,” in Phases A–D. The value comes from that sequence, not from Saa alone. A box on screen means the font lacks a glyph for this character; the encoded text itself has not changed.

How do I type 𖦅?

Use a Unicode-aware input method for its hexadecimal value.

Its Unicode value uses more than four hexadecimal digits, so entry varies by operating system and app.

As of 2026, macOS Unicode Hex Input rejects values above four hexadecimal digits, while iOS and Android offer no built-in hexadecimal entry. Character Viewer is an option on Mac; phones need a third-party input method that supports Bamum.