Tangut character 18450

In a Tangut office title, it means “measure” or “calculate.”

On a seal attached to a Khara-Khoto grain-tax receipt dated 1168, this character begins the four-character sequence 𘑐𘅞𗥦𘏿. One scholarly translation renders the parts as “measure/calculate, dimension, head, supervise” and identifies the whole title as a junior accounting official responsible for accounts. That supports a contextual gloss for 𘑐; it does not make the entire title its standalone meaning.

Tangut writing was promulgated around 1036 for the Western Xia state, for government work and Buddhist translation. The earliest securely dated Tangut document identified in scholarship is the Record of the Guazhou Trial, from 1069 or 1070. Tangut also appears in Buddhist works, official texts, and translations of Chinese and Tibetan books; the script fell out of use by the end of the Ming dynasty.

Why does Tangut look Chinese?

Its square forms draw on Chinese writing, but it is a separate script.

Tangut was built to write the Tangut language. Its square forms and character-building conventions draw on Chinese models, but Tangut is not the Han writing system.

Surviving Tangut books include Buddhist scriptures and secular works on law, military affairs, and literature, as well as translations from Chinese and Tibetan.

What does 𘑐 mean if sent alone?

Alone, it does not identify a complete message.

The gloss “measure/calculate” comes from a historical office title, so the glyph alone cannot tell you whether the sender means that role or is quoting another text. Ask what phrase or document it came from.