Tangut Ideograph 17E8A

It refers to an animal selected for ritual offering. A Tangut–Chinese dictionary pairs 𗺊 with 犧, a Chinese character whose classical sense is an animal set aside for a ceremony.

“Sacrificial animal” is a concise English gloss. The two glyphs are linked by translation, not interchangeable. The character is listed in Edition B of Homophones, a Tangut reference book that groups characters by sound. The book was first printed in 1125, reprinted in 1132, revised around 1176, and reprinted in 1187; those dates mark the book’s print history, not the glyph’s first appearance.

Where was 𗺊 used?

It belonged to writing used by the Western Xia state. Tangut writing was developed by imperial decree for the Tangut language. It carried state records and scholarship, as well as Buddhist and Chinese works translated into Tangut.

Its documented use runs from 1036 to 1502. Western Xia fell to Mongol forces in 1227, but Tangut writing continued afterward, including in religious texts.

Why does 𗺊 resemble Chinese?

Tangut writing uses a square, component-based design influenced by Chinese. It records a different language, so visual resemblance does not give 𗺊 a Mandarin reading or make it a Chinese character.

A Chinese character can help explain a Tangut word as a dictionary gloss. That link gives readers a clue to meaning, not a Chinese pronunciation.