Ɓ
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Latin_letter_B_with_hook.svg/220px-Latin_letter_B_with_hook.svg.png)
Ɓ(minuscule:ɓ), called "B-hook" or "B with ahook",is a letter of theLatin alphabetand theInternational African Alphabet.Its lower-case form,ɓ,represents avoiced bilabial implosivein theInternational Phonetic Alphabet.It is used to spell that sound in various languages, notablyFula,HausaandGiziga.It was also formerly used in or at least proposed forXhosaandZulu.
InUnicode,the upper case Ɓ is in theLatin Extended Brange (U+0181), and the lower case ɓ is in theIPA range(U+0253). In Shona the upper case form is a just a larger form of the lower case letter.
Alternative or obsolete capital form
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Implosive_b2.png)
ThePractical Orthography for African Languages(1930 ed.) used a different capital form, similar to theCyrillicletterbe(Б).[1]ANew Testamentin theLoma languageofLiberia,which was typeset in 1971, used this capital form.[2]
See also
[edit]Similar letters
[edit]Alphabets with this letter
[edit]- Africa Alphabet
- African reference alphabet
- Pan-Nigerian alphabet
- Alphabets for the following specific languages:
- Fula(see alsoFula orthographies)
- Hausa
- Giziga
Notes
[edit]- ^Practical Orthography of African Languages,Revised Edition, London: Oxford University Press, 1930
- ^Message posted to the "Qalam" list, Sept. 15, 2007
References
[edit]- Pullum, Geoffrey K.;Ladusaw, William A. (1996).Phonetic Symbol Guide.University of Chicago Press. p. 23.
- "Latin Extended B: Range 0180-024F" (Unicode code chart)
- "IPA Extensions: Range 0250-02AF" (Unicode code chart)