Tangut Character 17413

It is a Tangut character, but its label gives no translation. Tangut, also called Xixia, is the historic script used to write the Tangut language. “Tangut ideograph-17413” identifies the encoded character; it is not a word-level gloss. In the Sea of Writing, a Tangut rhyme dictionary, 𗐓 is listed under Rhyme 30 at position 40.223. That is a sound-based catalogue location, not an English definition.

A specialist can identify the entry in a Tangut text or dictionary, but its word value cannot be inferred from the glyph alone. To interpret it, use the surrounding Tangut text or a specialist lexicon. A font can show the character’s design without revealing what a historical writer intended.

Why was the Tangut script created?

It served Western Xia government, Buddhist translation, and political identity. Western Xia was a Tangut-led state in northwestern China. Its first emperor’s reign saw the script’s creation around 1036 as part of state-building. The script supported administration, work on a Tangut Buddhist canon, and cultural and political distinction from neighboring Song China. Those were the worlds in which 𗐓 belonged: government, literature, and religion.

A manuscript from Khara-khoto, a former Western Xia city, dates to c. 12th century. Tangut was used in official, private, and religious writing, including books, Buddhist sutras, inscriptions, and manuscripts. After Western Xia fell, the script continued under Yuan and Ming rule and became obsolete by the end of the Ming period. Much surviving literature consists of Tangut translations of Chinese works, but the script remained distinct from Chinese.