Tangut Character Ka

Use 17CE6 as a hexadecimal Unicode input.

In Word for Windows, as of 2026, type 17CE6 and press Alt+X. On Ubuntu, as of 2026, press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 17CE6, then press Enter.

In macOS Character Viewer, as of 2026, search for Unicode code 17CE6. In Word for Windows, as of 2026, a box instead of 𗳦 means the chosen font lacks Tangut coverage; switch to a font that includes Tangut.

What does 𗳦 mean?

Its reading is ka; the English gloss is unsettled.

A Tangut manuscript index identifies 𗳦 as entry L1737 and gives ka as its reconstructed reading. That is a pronunciation, not a translation. A note in the Tangut character archive links it to a phrase about a child with a level head; Li Fanwen's dictionary used this to propose “crew cut,” but the researcher reporting the note doubts the link. Treat that gloss as tentative.

What was Tangut writing used for?

It began as a state script and later served Buddhist publishing.

Around 1036, Western Xia ruler Li Yuanhao commissioned official Yeli Renrong to design the Tangut (Xixia) script. It marked political independence and became a system for official writing. Its forms use Chinese-style strokes and structural principles, but the script was designed for Tangut rather than made by copying whole Chinese characters.

The script also carried Buddhist translations. After Western Xia fell in 1227, Tangut books continued to be printed under Yuan rule; a surviving Buddhist inscription from 1502 is among the latest dated traces.