What 𝡻 means
It marks an open hinge handshape within a written sign.
In a complete sign, this character contributes the handshape. Nearby symbols add details such as movement, contact, location, or facial and body activity.
Why was SignWriting created?
To record signed movement, first in a research project.
SignWriting grew out of DanceWriting, a notation Valerie Sutton developed to record dance movement in 1966. In 1974, researchers at the University of Copenhagen asked Sutton to record gestures and Danish Sign Language from video. She adapted movement notation for signed languages. As Deaf writers and others used it, SignWriting developed beyond that research project into a way to write different signed languages.
Why does 𝡻 look incomplete?
A handshape symbol is only one part of the layout.
Unicode encodes SignWriting symbols, but a complete sign arranges them in two dimensions. A string containing 𝡻 alone has no movement, location, or surrounding symbols to complete the sign. Use SignMaker or SignPuddle to select symbols and arrange them into a full written sign.
Technical notation for SignWriting; surrounding symbols supply much of the reading.
Treating it as a complete sign invents movement and context this character does not provide.
What it means when someone sends it to you
2 readingsDon't confuse it with
4Questions people ask
1Why does 𝡻 show as a box?
As of 2026, a box usually means the receiving app's font lacks coverage for this character. Use a font that includes Sutton SignWriting symbols; a full sign still needs software that can lay out the symbols.
How to type 𝡻
𝡻\1D87BCodes and encoding1 code points
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.