Tangut register character

In Tangut, 𗹳 can mean a register: an official record book.

Western Xia-period legal texts use it for household, military, or land registers. These documents recorded people or property; land registers could also track tax obligations, so the surrounding passage decides which English gloss fits.

Why was Tangut writing created?

It gave Western Xia a script for government and culture. The Tangut script was deliberately developed around 1036 under Western Xia emperor Li Yuanhao. It served official work and Buddhist writing, and marked a state identity distinct from Song China. Neighboring Khitan rulers had already created scripts of their own; Tangut used a square, brush-written style associated with Chinese writing while recording the Tangut language.

Tangut works include official, private, and religious texts: legal records, household accounts, sutras, inscriptions, translations of Chinese classics, encyclopedias, military treatises, and literature. A Khara-Khoto manuscript probably dates to the 12th or early 13th century and preserves translated history and moral instruction.

After Western Xia fell to Mongol forces, Tangut writing continued under later dynasties and became obsolete by the end of the Ming dynasty.