Osage Small Letter Ehcha

𐓞 is an Osage letter for the “ch” in “chip,” with a little breath before it or a longer hold. It belongs to the Osage alphabet for the language of the Osage Nation; its distinct letter shapes were made so familiar English spellings would not steer learners toward the wrong sounds.

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What 𐓞 means

A “ch” with a short h-like breath first.

Say the “ch” in “chip,” then add a little breath just before it; in Osage, the same consonant can also be held longer. The plain “ch” has its own Osage letter, 𐓝.

Why was ehcha made one letter?

So one letter could cover the breath and length readings.

Written Osage used several spellings based on the Latin alphabet (the A–Z letters used in English) before there was one shared standard; one of the earliest written sources is dated circa 1851.

By 2006, the Osage Language Program had made a distinct alphabet from modified or combined Latin letter shapes because English readings of those familiar shapes could lead learners toward the wrong Osage sounds. In 2014, it replaced an earlier h + ch spelling with 𐓞, keeping the breath-or-length distinction within one letter; the Osage Nation adopted the revised system in 2015.