Newa Letter Rha

It is a tapped r spoken with a murmured, breathy voice.

In Nepal Bhasa, 𑐭 spells this consonant. Its Latin transliterations are rʰ and rh; the Newa character is one letter, not a Latin r+h sequence.

A vowel sign shapes the syllable; the Newa virama marks a consonant without its inherent vowel and helps form clusters.

When did Newa writing begin?

The Newa script is Brahmi-based and dates to the 10th century.

The earliest cited example is a 908 CE manuscript of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, a Buddhist scripture. Newa developed from Brahmi through northern Gupta and Kutila forms; it is historically related to Bengali, Odia, and Tirhuta. Devanagari later influenced it. Ranjana, Bhujimol, Kutila, Golmol, and Litumol are related Nepal-Lipi traditions.

Newa appeared in inscriptions, coins, manuscripts, books, and official records. Use declined after Gorkha forces took the Kathmandu Valley in 1769; the script was banned in 1905, and the ban ended in 1951. The Unicode Standard's 2025 edition says Nepal Bhasa is most often written in Devanagari. UNESCO reported in 2026 that a project digitized and put more than 30 old Newa manuscripts online.

How do I type Newa Rha?

Use Unicode hexadecimal entry if your keyboard lacks Newa.

Hex entry requires all five digits; shortcuts vary by application.

A font with Newa support is needed to display the result.