What 𝑔 means
In HTML text, write 𝑔; it renders as 𝑔.
HTML is the source code behind a web page; this hexadecimal character reference tells the browser which character to show. In MathML formulas, use the literal glyph directly.
What does 𝑔 mean in a formula?
It marks an italic math variable; the formula defines which one.
Math typesetting usually sets single-letter variables and quantities in italic, while unit symbols and descriptive labels are upright. So the style signals a role, not what g measures; the surrounding formula has to define that.
The convention is older than this character encoding.
Math italic appears to have entered European printed notation in the late sixteenth century, as a special typeface for variables distinct from ordinary text italic.
A 1998 proposal for mathematical alphabets argued that styles can distinguish mathematical meanings and should remain distinct when formulas are saved as plain text.
Part of the collection
What it means when someone sends it to you
2 readingsAn italic variable or quantity; the surrounding notation supplies its role.
Don't confuse it with
1
Questions people ask
1Why did 𝑔 turn into g?
A text-cleanup step such as NFKC (compatibility normalization) can fold mathematical-style letters back to their base letters, so 𝑔 becomes g.
More like this
11
How to type or find 𝑔
- Search it as
- math g · italic g · italic letter g · g variable · unicode g · fancy g · styled g · g symbol
- Shows up in
- Anything that takes text · its shape is whatever your font draws
𝑔\1D454𝑔 in an HTML text node; the browser resolves this hexadecimal character reference to 𝑔.Codes and encoding1 code points
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.