Modi Vowel Sign E

It adds e to the preceding Modi consonant.

This Modi combining mark, also called an e matra, attaches to a consonant. For an initial e, use independent letter 𑘊. Unicode encodes that letter on its own; do not build it from Modi letter A followed by this sign, 𑘀𑘹.

How did Modi become an administrative script?

Modi is a Brahmi-based script from the Nagari family, used mainly for Marathi. One history places its use in the fifteenth century; Unicode dates its emergence as an administrative script to the sixteenth century, before Maratha rule. Its earliest surviving document is from the early seventeenth century, and Maratha rulers adopted the script officially in the seventeenth century.

Modi’s flowing forms suited quick, continuous writing. It carried Marathi letters, revenue records, and administrative papers under the Sultanates and Maratha kingdoms. Modi also appears in writing for Hindi, Gujarati, Kannada, Konkani, Persian, Tamil, and Telugu; some administrative records paired Marathi and Persian. Balbodh—the Devanagari writing style used for Marathi—served literary and sacred texts. Printing favored Balbodh in the nineteenth century. Modi’s formal use was discontinued in the 1950s as Devanagari became standard for Marathi. As everyday use receded, the script also took on symbolic value as an icon of the early modern Maratha state.

Why can this Modi mark look unfinished?

Without a base consonant, it may look detached.

The sign attaches to a consonant, and Modi fonts use contextual forms to position consonant-vowel combinations. Without its base, the mark may appear unattached; with one, its placement depends on the font’s shaping rules.

For a syllable that starts with e, use 𑘊. In an existing Modi syllable, place 𑘹 after the consonant; a Modi-capable editor and font are needed to show their contextual form.