What 𐒌 means
It represents the Somali consonant with a hard g sound, as in “go.” When Somali is written in Latin letters, the same consonant is spelled g. By itself, 𐒌 usually serves as a letter sample, a spelling exercise, or a reference to Osmanya rather than a word with a separate meaning.
Known in Somali as far Soomaali (“Somali writing”) or Cismaanya, Osmanya was devised by Somali writer Osman Yusuf Kenadid in 1920–1922. It replaced an earlier attempt by Sheikh Uweys to create an Arabic-based Somali spelling system, then was superseded by the Latin orthography developed by Muuse Xaaji Ismaaciil Galaal.
Why use Osmanya today?
Use it to write or study Osmanya. In 1961, Latin and Osmanya were both adopted for use in Somalia; Somalia adopted the Latin orthography in 1973. A 1977 account recorded Osmanya in private correspondence and bookkeeping, as well as in several books and a journal published every two weeks. A 2025 Unicode proposal describes Osmanya as part of Somali linguistic and cultural heritage, with historical and academic significance.
Script-specific and historical: 𐒌 fits Osmanya text; in Latin-based Somali, the same consonant is written g.
In Latin-script Somali, 𐒌 switches scripts; it is not a decorative Latin g.
Part of the collection
Who writes 𐒌
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Related characters
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Questions people ask
1Why does 𐒌 show as a box or blank?
Your font or app may lack an Osmanya glyph, leaving a blank or missing-character box. A font with Osmanya coverage can display the letter.
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Collections with 𐒌
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How to type or find 𐒌
- Also called
- Farta Cismaanya · Far Soomaali · Cismaanya
- Search it as
- Osmanya ga · Somali g in Osmanya · Osmanya script
- Shows up in
- Anything that takes text · its shape is whatever your font draws
𐒌\1048CCodes and encoding1 code points
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.