Khitan Character 18B72

The number identifies the sign; context gives its role. “Character-18B72” is a serial Unicode label; this script used signs for words and sounds.

In the 10th century, Liao rulers made large and small scripts for Khitan. The small script drew on Chinese character patterns; a court chronicle credits Yelü Diela after he learned from Uyghur envoys, though scholars debate whether the model was Uyghur or another Turkic script.

One chronology dates the oldest surviving small-script monument to 1053. The Jurchen founded Jin, where Khitan writing continued until the 1191 ban. Jurchen scripts borrowed Khitan models; inscriptions resurfaced in the 20th century.