Tangut Ideograph 18039

It is glossed “name of an insect” in a Tangut dictionary.

A 2018 Tangut dictionary gives 𘀹 the gloss 蟲名, literally “insect name”; it does not identify the insect. The entry treats it as a word in Tangut writing, not a drawing of a bug.

The Tangut script was created under the first emperor of Western Xia around 1036 to write Tangut, the language of that state in what is now northwestern China. The state used it for correspondence in 1036, and a translation committee began Buddhist sutra work in 1038. Tangut writing continued under the Yuan and Ming dynasties, then became obsolete by the end of the Ming.

Why does a Tangut text mention Capricorn?

It records a sound, not this character’s meaning.

The 1190 Tangut–Chinese glossary The Pearl in the Palm uses related form 󰅏 in a sound note for the Chinese term 麽竭, translated as “Capricorn.” The note records pronunciation; 𘀹 is not a zodiac sign. A Unicode proposal identifies 󰅏 as a likely non-unifiable variant of 𘀹: a source distinction to preserve, not a free replacement.

It is specialist text, not chat shorthand

In casual chat, it reads as historical Tangut text.

Readers who do not know Tangut cannot infer “insect name” from the written form; add a gloss when that meaning matters. A Tangut-capable font draws the character; a device without the needed font coverage may show a box instead.