Tangut character 𗧥

It is a Tangut character; “long” is a scholarly gloss. A Tangut dictionary lists its reconstructed reading as *zjir² and glosses it as “long.” The asterisk marks an inferred reading, not a directly recorded pronunciation.

Specialists can use that dictionary entry; outside that setting, the glyph alone does not show whether someone is quoting a text or asking about the character.

Why was Tangut writing created?

It gave Western Xia a script for its own language and state.

In 1036, the Western Xia ruler Li Yuanhao ordered a new writing system as part of building the state. It was designed for Tangut, the state's language, and used to translate Buddhist scripture.

Tangut writing drew on Chinese writing principles but formed a separate system. Neighboring Khitan communities had created scripts of their own earlier, placing Tangut within a regional history of distinct, state-backed writing systems.

A Khara-Khoto manuscript, probably from the 12th or early 13th century, contains a translated non-religious text.

What happened to Tangut writing after Western Xia?

It continued in Buddhist and other learned writing after the state fell.

The latest known Tangut inscription dates to 1502. The surviving record shifts from state use to religious and scholarly transmission. That history does not give this one character a new meaning; surrounding Tangut text determines its role.