Tangut character 1722C

Tangut writing was created for the Tangut language under Western Xia. The script was developed under the first Western Xia emperor, about 1036. Two 12th-century reference works, Wénhǎi (“Sea of Writing”) and Tóngyīn (“Homophones”), record 𗈬. A scholarly sound reconstruction tells how specialists read it; that reading alone is not an English translation.

After Western Xia fell, Tangut writing continued through the Yuan and Ming dynasties, later ruling periods in China, and became obsolete by the end of the Ming dynasty. Tangut texts include official and private documents, Buddhist sutras, books, inscriptions, and manuscripts. Following its late-19th-century rediscovery, the script became a subject of scholarly study.

Is 𗈬 Chinese?

No; it belongs to the Tangut script. Tangut writing drew on Chinese characters for its model, and the two scripts share a dense, square, brush-written appearance. They represent different languages, though, and a reader of one cannot automatically read the other. The resemblance points to historical influence, not a Chinese reading for 𗈬.

How do you type 𗈬?

Use a Tangut-aware character browser or input method. A Tangut browser or IME (input method editor) can search by glyph, scholarly reading, or written component, then let you select a result.