Cherokee Small Letter Tsi

ꮵ writes the Cherokee syllable “tsi.”

Cherokee uses a syllabary, a writing system where each sign represents a spoken syllable. “Tsi” sounds roughly like “tsee,” with “ts” as at the end of “cats” followed by “ee.” In a Cherokee word, ꮵ contributes that syllable; shown alone, it identifies the sound, while context tells you whether it forms a word or belongs in a longer one.

Cherokee writing was traditionally caseless. Lowercase ꮵ belongs to a modern case distinction; it keeps the same syllable as the uppercase form.

Why does the Cherokee syllabary look like this?

Its printed form reflects Cherokee writing and early printing.

Sequoyah developed the Cherokee syllabary to write Cherokee speech during 1815–1821. Archaeologists interpret the Red Bird River Shelter inscriptions as experiments in creating it: evidence of a writing system being developed, rather than an ancient inherited script.

Cherokee Nation adopted the syllabary in 1825. In 1827, Samuel Worcester and collaborators finalized the metal type—the reusable pieces used to print letters. Some printed forms resemble Latin letters because printers adapted available type; resemblance does not establish matching sounds. In the 1840s, Cherokee's literacy success influenced James Evans's Cree syllabics, a separate writing system for Cree.

How do I type Cherokee tsi?

Choose a Cherokee keyboard and enter tsi.

As of 2026, Cherokee Nation's PC guide documents two layouts: a phonetic keyboard that turns tsi into Cherokee syllabary text, and a one-key/one-stroke layout with a Cherokee-specific key map. Select lowercase or case mode if offered; the key for ꮵ depends on the layout.