Tai Tham Tham Digit One

᪑ is the numeral one in the Tham set. This is the Nai Tham numeral tradition used in religious manuscripts. Tai Tham also has a distinct Hora set, whose own one, ᪁, is associated with secular manuscripts; the two forms belong to different writing traditions.

The script grew from South Indian writing traditions, and its forms strongly resemble the Mon script used in the ancient kingdom of Haripuñjaya. A Tham inscription dated 1376 survives; the oldest known dated Tham manuscript is a Pali Buddhist text copied at Wat Lai Hin, a Buddhist temple, in 1471. By the 15th century, Tham had also been adapted for local-language writing.

Tham numerals served manuscript pagination. Tham writing later carried chronicles, legal, astrological, medicinal, and poetic works. As of 2026, its regional role varies: in Laos, Tham is chiefly religious; among Northern Thai, Tai Lue, and Khün communities, it also serves regional or identity writing. New Tai Lue digits are documented adaptations of Tai Tham’s Hora set.

Why can ᪑ look different in another font?

Fonts can show different regional Tai Tham styles. Reference charts show Khuen and Tai Lue forms. A font may draw ᪑ in either style, changing its shape while the encoded digit and its value remain the same.