Yi Syllable Hmux

It marks one Yi syllable; the word needs context. In Yi Pinyin, hm marks the starting consonant, u the vowel, and final x the tone category—a pitch pattern used in speech.

One written Yi syllable can correspond to different words. Alone, ꂤ identifies a sound unit, not a dependable English translation; the surrounding Yi syllables supply the word.

Where did the Yi script come from?

Yi writing has regional histories, and its beginning is disputed. Proposed early evidence includes inscriptions on pottery, stone, bronze, and bone. Some scholars count artifacts dated to 206 BC to AD 9 as Yi-writing evidence, while others dispute what they prove. The earliest paper texts discussed in scholarship date to around 1500, and formal Yi writing is documented by the early Ming period.

Yi ritual specialists called bimo copied and performed texts for ceremonies, family histories, healing, divination, and life-cycle events. Regional graphs and readings varied, and scholars debate whether older Yi writing was mainly picture-, word-, or syllable-based. The modern Liangshan standard was devised in 1974 and officially promulgated in 1980 to improve literacy and represent Nuosu, a Yi-language variety from Liangshan. Older labels such as Cuan script and bimo script refer to the wider Yi writing traditions.

Why does ꂤ render as a box?

The font on your device may not include Yi characters. Without Yi character coverage, a font may show a box or replacement shape. Nuosu SIL is a font for the standardized Yi script; another Yi font may draw a different outline without changing the encoded character.