Newa Letter Sha

It is the Newa consonant called sha.

Newa is an abugida: each consonant carries a default vowel, and signs can change that vowel. The Newa sha contributes its consonant to a syllable; the surrounding word supplies the full meaning.

Newa writing has been used for Nepal Bhasa and Sanskrit, as well as historically for Nepali, Maithili, Bengali, and Hindi.

How did Newa writing develop?

It grew from older Brahmi-based South Asian writing traditions.

Newa writing is attested by the tenth century in inscriptions, coins, manuscripts, books, and other publications. Styles such as Prachalit, Ranjana, and Bhujimol served religious, literary, commercial, and documentary writing. Ranjana's ornamental style also travelled beyond Nepal with Tibetan Buddhism.

Newa remained active in central Nepal through the late eighteenth century. Its use was banned in 1905; the ban was lifted in 1951. As of 2026, Newa is used for Nepal Bhasa, although that language is more commonly written in Devanagari.

Why does 𑐱 change shape in text?

Consonant clusters can reshape it, while vowel signs change the syllable.

Newa consonant clusters can form conjuncts—letters joined into one written shape. The Unicode description prefers vertically stacked conjuncts, while manuscripts also show horizontal or cascading forms. A font may render the same character differently without changing which letter it is.

The Newa Aa vowel sign changes the vowel of a syllable and can follow 𑐱. The Newa virama removes a consonant's built-in vowel, allowing it to join the next consonant.