Tangut character 18396

It is glossed as “link,” “continuous,” or “adhesion.”

Tangut was the language of Xixia, or the Western Xia state. Emperor Li Yuanhao ordered its script into use in 1036 as part of state-building. Chinese writing influenced its visual design and character-building principles; earlier scripts made by neighboring Khitan states were a nearby precedent. Tangut texts include Buddhist translations from Chinese and Tibetan, as well as legal writing.

A Tangut manuscript fragment found at Khara-Khoto probably dates to the 12th or early 13th century. An inscription from 1502 attests use after the Western Xia period. The setting shifted from historical writing to preserved texts and modern scholarship.

Someone sent me 𘎖 — what does it mean?

It is a Tangut word, not a universal chat sign.

In a Tangut sentence, use the surrounding words to choose among its dictionary glosses. Sent alone, it does not show that the sender means “connection”; ask for the source or a translation.

The same character might appear in a quotation, a study sample, or a font test. The glyph alone cannot tell you which one.

Why does 𘎖 resemble Chinese writing?

Its design takes cues from Chinese writing; the word is Tangut.

Tangut is a distinct language and script. Chinese and Tangut signs can look alike, but the resemblance does not tell you how to read this word or what it means.

In a modern radical-and-stroke index, 𘎖 is filed under Tangut Component 434, 𘦱, at 12 strokes. That links the two for lookup; it does not make the component a synonym or substitute.