Kaithi Candrabindu

It marks a Kaithi syllable; its precise role depends on context.

A Kaithi encoding proposal says the sign can mark vowel nasalization, a nasal quality in the vowel. The linguist George Grierson says Kaithi generally did not use it that way and records it in a Kaithi transcription of the Devanagari consonant cluster ज्ञ, two consonants written together. These accounts disagree, so the surrounding spelling matters.

By the 16th century, Kaithi was an independent writing system. People used it for administration and business records, personal correspondence, and religious and literary writing across regional languages.

Is 𑂀 the same as Devanagari chandrabindu?

No. Kaithi and Devanagari use distinct signs.

Kaithi and Devanagari are related scripts in the Nagari family, not two fonts for one character. The Devanagari chandrabindu is ँ; it belongs to Devanagari spelling, while 𑂀 belongs to Kaithi. Kaithi was used for Bhojpuri, Magahi, Awadhi, Maithili, Urdu, and other regional languages. As Devanagari became formal in many of those settings, the related sign tradition did not make the characters interchangeable.

Enter the host first, then the mark.

On an input method that supports Kaithi, enter the letter or vowel-sign sequence first, then this nonspacing mark. It attaches to that preceding sequence; without Kaithi shaping support, a font may misplace it or fail to show the attachment.