What 𑐁 means
It is the independent Newa letter for the aa vowel. Written by itself, it marks the vowel on its own; after a consonant, the same vowel is written with attached sign 𑐵. The separate letter 𑐀 is A, a different vowel, so confusing the two changes the spelling.
How did Newa writing develop?
Newa writing is documented in Nepal by the 10th century. A handwritten Buddhist scripture, the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, dated 908 CE is one example; a Nidan manuscript dated 901 AD is also cited.
Newa writing recorded public and religious life in Nepal: it appears in inscriptions, on coins, in official records, and in Hindu and Buddhist books. It was used for Nepal Bhasa as well as Sanskrit, Nepali, Maithili, Bengali, and Hindi.
After Gorkha forces conquered Nepal in 1769, Newa use declined. A ban in 1905 further restricted the script until it was lifted in 1951. Digital publishing and messaging tools have helped revive Newa writing; a Newa Keyboard listing in 2025 advertised input in phone apps and social posts.
Part of the collection
Who writes 𑐁
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Don't confuse it with
1
Related characters
1
Questions people ask
1Why does 𑐁 show as a box?
A missing Newa-capable font or text-shaping support can leave it unrendered; the underlying character is unchanged.
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10
How to type or find 𑐁
- Search it as
- aa · ā · newa · newar · newari · prachalit · nepalakshar · nepaalalipi
- Shows up in
- Anything that takes text · its shape is whatever your font draws
𑐁\11401Codes and encoding1 code points
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.