Ethiopic syllable Hhi

It joins the ሐ-row consonant and the i vowel.

This sign belongs inside a larger Ethiopic-script word; it is not a complete word or an idea on its own. Say a gentle breath of h followed by the i vowel, as in “see.” Scholarly Latin transliteration writes it ḥi; the dot marks the ሐ row, while plain h can hide that spelling distinction.

Ethiopic developed from a consonant-based South Arabian script used in inscriptions. Recognizable Ethiopic inscriptions date from the second or third century CE; vowel notation was added by the fourth century CE, giving consonant signs vowel forms. The ሐ row is historically linked to Old South Arabian 𐩢. Ethiopic later served royal, literary and liturgical writing in Geʿez.

Can I replace ሒ with ሂ?

Only when the word’s spelling calls for it.

Amharic can pronounce ሒ and ሂ alike: a soft, breathy h followed by i. Geʿez preserves the contrast between their rows. In scholarly Latin transliteration, ḥ marks the ሐ row; plain h can hide the spelling distinction. Follow the spelling used for the language or source, especially in a name or quotation.

Geʿez is the classical language of Ethiopian literary and liturgical writing. Amharic, Tigrinya and Tigre also use Ethiopic letters, with their own spelling conventions.

How do I type ሒ?

On Keyman’s GFF Amharic layout, press H then i for ሒ.

That uses the ሐ-family key and its third vowel order (as of 2026). Other keyboards may map different keys; those mappings belong to the input software, not Unicode.

If it appears as a box or blank, the active font may not include ሒ. Its visible shape depends on the Ethiopic font in use.