Limbu Digit Four

Use a Limbu Unicode keyboard.

As of 2026, SIL's Namdhinggo page lists two Keyman layouts: Limbu Phonetic maps Limbu characters to Latin keyboard keys; Limbu Typewriter roughly follows a Devanagari typewriter. Older Namdhinggo SIL L text may use a legacy encoding and need conversion to Unicode.

What does ᥊ mean?

It is the Limbu-script numeral for four. Limbu counts in decimal; ᥇᥊ represents fourteen.

The written record has several layers. A Cambridge catalogue describes a Limbu alphabet book as early-18th-century, possibly around 1730 or earlier. Unicode identifies nineteenth-century manuscripts collected in Darjeeling in the 1850s as the oldest known Limbu writings. The modern script began development in 1925 to revive writing that had fallen out of use.

The script is also called Sirijanga, after a cultural hero credited with its invention. It appears in education and literature, including Mundhum, a body of Limbu oral and ritual teaching. Public use in Nepal was restricted during the Rana and Panchayat eras; in Sikkim, the script developed through teaching and literary work. These settings connect it with Limbu religious and cultural identity. The Limbu language is distantly related to Lepcha and Tibetan; historical accounts describe possible Lepcha influence on the Limbu script.

Why does ᥊ look different or disappear?

Font support determines whether ᥊ appears; script styles can differ.

Unicode encodes an older manuscript form, an early modern form used in publications from 1928 through the 1970s, and a current form used since the 1970s. Some glyphs differ significantly between versions. A box means the font or text renderer lacks Limbu support; use a Limbu-capable font with script-shaping support.