Shan digit four

In Shan, this is the digit for four, read sìi—roughly like a long ‘see’ at low pitch. It marks numbers written in Shan digits; Myanmar/Burmese or ASCII digits can write the same values.

Text symbol

What ႔ means

It marks four in Shan numerals. In Shan numbers, ႑႔ is 14 and ႒႔ is 24.

How did Shan writing take shape?

Shan writing grew through purposeful borrowing. A Chinese Ming-dynasty scroll dated 1407 records Tay (Shan) writing. Burmese borrowing shaped Shan writing before the fifteenth century. The Myanmar script came from a Brahmi-related script brought from South India about the eighth century to write the Mon language. Tay communities sought the Burmese kingdoms of Pagan and Ava for practical use and political prestige, without taking up Theravada Buddhism.

Part of the collection

ၵ

Shan Alphabet & Letters

Who writes ႔

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Don't confuse it with

၄

Myanmar Digit Four

Myanmar/Burmese digit four: the same value in another digit set.

Digit Four

ASCII digit 4: the same value, but not a Shan digit.

Questions people ask

Why does ႔ show as a box on some devices?

Because that device's fonts have no glyph for it. The character is still correct and still copies correctly — the box is a missing glyph, not a broken character.