Tai Tham letter U

It is an independent vowel letter in Tai Tham.

That means it writes the vowel “u” as its own letter rather than as a sign attached to a consonant. In a word, it supplies that vowel; alone, it is a letter fragment, so the word and language provide its context.

Where did the Tai Tham script come from?

It grew through contact between Mon and Tai writing traditions.

Tai Tham is closely related to Mon writing associated with Haripuñjaya, an earlier kingdom in what is now northern Thailand. The oldest dated Tham document is a bilingual gold-leaf inscription from 1376; the oldest dated Tham manuscript is a handwritten book on palm leaves from 1471.

The script served Buddhist writing, including Pali—the language of Theravada Buddhist texts—and local languages written on palm leaves and paper. It later carried chronicles, legal, astrological, medical, and poetic works. In Laos it was mainly religious, while secular writing more often used Lao Buhan (the older Lao script); in northern Thailand it also became a regional identity script. As of 2025, it remained in use for Lue, Khün, and Northern Thai, and was taught in Tai Lue monasteries.

Why does ᩏ look different?

The character stays the same; its glyph comes from the font.

Regional styles can draw Tai Tham letters differently; Unicode 17 (2025) shows Khuen and Tai Lue samples. The script also needs complex-text shaping, software that positions its letters and marks correctly. If ᩏ looks wrong or is missing, check that the font covers Tai Tham and the app supports shaping.