What 𘳉 means
The Unicode name is a code label, not a translation.
Khitan Small Script uses signs for whole words and for sounds; sound signs commonly join into word-sized clusters. This glyph alone does not show which role it has.
Why was Khitan Small Script created?
It added a sound-based way to write Khitan.
The Khitan-founded Liao dynasty introduced a Large Script modeled on Chinese characters in 920. Around 925, Yelü Diela developed the Small Script, with Chinese-shaped elements and phonetic principles reportedly inspired by Uyghur writing, another Central Asian script.
It served official records, inscriptions, poetry, and translations. Later Jin rulers kept Khitan writing until its abolition in 1191; Jurchen writers adapted Khitan models for their language. Epitaphs discovered in 1922 became key evidence for modern readings.
Part of the collection
Who writes 𘳉
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Questions people ask
1Why does 𘳉 show as a box on some devices?
It is recent: Unicode added it in version 13.0 (2020), and phones and computers whose fonts are older than that have nothing to draw it with. The character itself is still correct and copies correctly.
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How to type or find 𘳉
- Search it as
- 契丹小字 · qidan xiaozi · khitan glyph · khitan inscription
- Shows up in
- Anything that takes text · its shape is whatever your font draws
𘳉\18CC9Codes and encoding1 code points
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.