Linear B Syllable B051 Du

It writes one syllable, conventionally transliterated “du.” Transliteration is a scholarly spelling in letters; here, “du” names the sign’s syllabic value. The sign belongs inside a word and does not name an object by itself.

Linear B was used to write Mycenaean Greek for palace records in the Late Bronze Age. Its earliest evidence is at Knossos, and its main span was 1400–1190 BCE. Clay tablets and some vessels recorded goods, people, and allocations.

Why does “du” connect Linear B to Linear A?

The scripts share sign forms, but their readings are not interchangeable. Linear B adapted an older Aegean sign tradition to write Mycenaean Greek. Linear A is older and remains undeciphered as of 2026; many forms are shared, but the exact transition is debated. “Du” is the deciphered value in Linear B, not a confirmed reading for a similar Linear A sign. Later Greek used an alphabet, so 𐀉 is not a modern Greek letter.

In the Linear B spelling du-wo, 𐀉 supplies the first syllable of the Mycenaean Greek word for two. Recorded spellings also include wi-du-wo-i-jo, wi-do-wo-i-jo, and wi-dwo-i-jo. The full reading comes from the sequence, not this sign alone.

How do I type 𐀉 if my font doesn’t show it?

A missing box is a font problem; Unicode text can remain intact. A Unicode-aware app can retain the character, but the selected font needs Linear B coverage. Switch to a font that includes the script.

Use your app’s Unicode or hexadecimal input and enter 10009 (U+10009). On Windows, the exact keystrokes depend on the application and configuration.