What ꇖ means
It represents one syllable in Liangshan Yi writing. The romanized label ly names this syllable in the standard; it is not an English translation. Its contribution to a word is read from surrounding Yi text.
The earliest surviving monumental evidence usually cited for Yi writing is a bronze bell dated 1485. Older local traditions could give related signs different shapes or sound values. Village priests transmitted Yi texts used in religious rites, magic, medicine, and family histories. The Liangshan standard selected older Yi forms; its set of syllable signs was fixed in 1974 and officially promulgated in 1980 to expand literacy. It does not represent every Yi variety.
How do I type ꇖ?
Choose a Yi keyboard or Unicode entry. A keyboard or input method for Yi Syllables can insert it; typing Latin ly as ordinary text will not turn the label into this character. For a one-off insertion, use your editor’s Unicode-entry command for U+A1D6.
Standardized Yi text normally runs left to right and uses Chinese punctuation. Yi characters do not need special typographic clusters: ꇖ is one character, not a joined sequence.
Why is ly not the same as lyx?
The ending marks a different tone. In Liangshan romanization, ly, lyt, lyx, and lyp are separate syllable entries: final t, x, or p mark tones (voice pitch), while ly has the midlevel tone.
Don't confuse it with
4Questions people ask
1Why does ꇖ show as a box?
The active font may not include this standardized Yi character. Input can still succeed; use a font with Yi coverage, because the box is only a fallback display.
How to type ꇖ
ꇖ\A1D6Codes and encoding1 code points
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.