Tirhuta Letter Ssa

It is the Tirhuta consonant called ssa.

On its own, it does not form a word; it helps spell Tirhuta words alongside the script’s other consonants and vowel signs.

Tirhuta, also called Mithilakshar or Mithilakshara, developed from the Gauḍī (Proto-Bengali) script, which descended from a later form of Brahmi, an older Indian script. Among the oldest surviving records are temple inscriptions in Bihar and Nepal from the 13th century. Tirhuta was used for Sanskrit first and for Maithili by the 14th century.

Is 𑒭 Bengali or Tirhuta?

It is a Tirhuta character; Bengali is a related, separate script.

Tirhuta, Bengali, Newa (also called Newari), and Odia (called Oriya in older Unicode names) share a script history but had become distinct by the 14th and 15th centuries. The Bengali letter ষ is a separate character with the same standardized letter name, SSA; it is not another encoding of 𑒭.

The Devanagari script became the primary way of writing Maithili in the late 20th century, while Tirhuta continued in cultural and religious use.

Why does 𑒭 look different on different screens?

Fonts can draw the same Tirhuta letter differently.

The Unicode reference chart does not prescribe one fixed outline, and fonts can use different letter forms. A box or blank usually means the app has no usable Tirhuta glyph for the character.

As of 2026, documented uses include religious and literary manuscripts, correspondence, genealogical records, and formal invitation or announcement cards.