Vai Syllable Li

It writes one Vai syllable, li. Vai is a syllabic script: one character can represent a whole syllable rather than a single letter. The Latin-letter transliteration li names the sound represented by ꔷ. Some long syllables use two characters, with the second continuing the same syllable.

As of 2026, MediaWiki's Vai transliteration layout maps l then i to ꔷ.

Why was the Vai script created?

To give Vai people a way to write to one another. The Vai script took shape around Jondu in Liberia in the early 1830s, chiefly through Momolu Duwalu Bukẹlẹ. Vai is spoken in coastal western Liberia and eastern Sierra Leone. The writing system supported local literacy alongside Arabic and Latin literacy already present in the region.

The earliest Vai manuscript known to survive was reported to missionaries in 1834 and later traced to Harvard’s archives.

The origin accounts differ: Bukẹlẹ attributed the script to a dream, while an early Vai manuscript, The Book of Rora, says young men made a book so Vai people could write letters to one another. Some Vai manuscripts also carry Islamic moral teaching. A Cherokee connection has been proposed but remains unproven; Latin, Arabic, or an earlier local pictographic system are possible influences. In the first half of the twentieth century, the Vai syllabic model influenced Mende, Loma, and Kpelle scripts, each with its own characters.

How to type ꔷ without a Vai keyboard?

Use a Vai transliteration layout or your system’s Unicode input. The steps depend on the operating system and text field.

In 2026, a font without Vai coverage can make ꔷ appear as a square or question mark. Select a font that supports Vai; the missing-glyph box does not change the character.