HTML Entity for Lowercase A Inverted Breve (ȃ)

Beginner
⏱️ 5 min read
📚 Updated: Jun 2026
🎯 1 Code Example
Unicode U+0203
HTML Entity for Lowercase A Inverted Breve tutorial illustration

What You'll Learn

How to display the lowercase a with inverted breve (ȃ) in HTML using hexadecimal, decimal, and CSS escape methods. The inverted breve is a diacritical mark used in Slavic linguistics and phonetic notation. This character is U+0203 in the Latin Extended-B block.

Render it with ȃ, ȃ, or CSS escape \203. There is no named HTML entity for this character, so numeric codes or CSS must be used.

⚡ Quick Reference — Lowercase A Inverted Breve Entity

Unicode U+0203

Latin Extended-B

Hex Code ȃ

Hexadecimal reference

HTML Code ȃ

Decimal reference

Named Entity —

No named entity

Reference Table
Name           Value
────────────   ──────────
Unicode        U+0203
Hex code       ȃ
HTML code      ȃ
Named entity   (none)
CSS code       \203
Meaning        Latin small letter a with inverted breve
Related        U+0202 = uppercase equivalent (Ȃ)
Block          Latin Extended-B (U+0180–U+024F)
1

Complete HTML Example

A simple example showing the lowercase a inverted breve (ȃ) using hexadecimal code, decimal HTML code, and a CSS content escape:

html
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
 <style>
  #point:after{
   content: "\203";
  }
 </style>
</head>
<body>
<p>Symbol (hex): &#x203;</p>
<p>Symbol (decimal): &#515;</p>
<p id="point">Symbol (CSS): </p>
</body>
</html>
Try it Yourself

🌐 Browser Support

The lowercase a inverted breve (ȃ) renders correctly in modern browsers when UTF-8 is used:

Chrome1+
Firefox1+
Safari1+
Edge12+
Opera4+
Android4.4+
iOS Safari1+

👀 Live Preview

See the lowercase a inverted breve (ȃ) and its references:

Large glyphȃ
DiacriticInverted breve accent on a
Uppercase pairȂ (U+0202) / ȃ (U+0203)
Not the same asă (breve) or plain a
Numeric refs&#x203; &#515; \203

🧠 How It Works

1

Hexadecimal Code

&#x203; uses the Unicode hexadecimal value 203 to display the character. The x prefix indicates hexadecimal format.

HTML markup
2

Decimal HTML Code

&#515; uses the decimal Unicode value 515 to display the same character. A common method for Latin Extended-B characters.

HTML markup
3

CSS Entity

\203 is used in CSS stylesheets, particularly in the content property of pseudo-elements like ::before and ::after.

CSS stylesheet
=

Same visual result

All three methods produce the glyph: ȃ. Unicode U+0203 sits in Latin Extended-B. Uppercase equivalent: U+0202 (Ȃ). There is no named HTML entity. Do not confuse with ă (breve, U+0103).

✅

Use Cases

The lowercase a inverted breve (ȃ) is commonly used in:

🔤 Slavic linguistics

Slavic dialectology and phonetic notation for tone, stress, or vowel quality.

🌐 Internationalization

Websites and apps for Slavic languages or linguistic research requiring ȃ.

📚 Language learning

Dictionaries and learning resources showing correct tone with inverted-breve marks.

📄 Publishing

Academic and scholarly content in Slavic linguistics or phonetics.

🎨 Typography

Headlines and styled text in linguistics or Slavic language contexts.

🔍 Search & SEO

Correct rendering so specialized linguistic content can be found and indexed.

📝 Phonetic transcription

Tone or stress transcription systems using the inverted breve diacritic.

💡 Best Practices

Do

  • Use &#515; or &#x203; in HTML (no named entity exists)
  • Serve pages as UTF-8; you can also type ȃ directly in UTF-8 source
  • Set lang attributes (e.g. lang="sl", lang="hr") for Slavic content
  • Use fonts that support Latin Extended-B diacritics
  • Distinguish ȃ (inverted breve) from ă (breve) and plain a

Don’t

  • Assume a named entity exists—there is none for ȃ
  • Substitute ă (breve) when ȃ (inverted breve) is required
  • Put CSS escape \203 in HTML text nodes
  • Assume all fonts render Latin Extended-B inverted-breve glyphs
  • Omit UTF-8 encoding on pages with extended Latin characters

Key Takeaways

1

Three references render ȃ (no named entity)

&#x203; &#515;
2

For CSS stylesheets, use the escape in the content property

\203
3

Unicode U+0203 — LATIN SMALL LETTER A WITH INVERTED BREVE

4

Used in Slavic linguistics, phonetic transcription, and tone notation

5

Previous: Lowercase A Grave (à)   Next: Lowercase A Latin

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

Use &#x203; (hex), &#515; (decimal), or \203 in CSS content. There is no named HTML entity for this character.
U+0203 (LATIN SMALL LETTER A WITH INVERTED BREVE). Latin Extended-B block. Hex 203, decimal 515. Used in Slavic linguistics for tone or stress notation.
In Slavic linguistic content, phonetic transcriptions, tone notation, language learning materials, and internationalized web content that requires this diacritic. It appears in some Slavic dialect and phonetic notation.
HTML code (&#515; or &#x203;) is used in HTML content. The CSS entity (\203) is used in CSS, e.g. in the content property of pseudo-elements. Both produce ȃ but in different contexts.
No. There is no named HTML entity for ȃ. Use &#515; or &#x203; in HTML, or \203 in CSS. This is standard for many Latin Extended-B characters.

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About the author

Mari Selvan M P
Mari Selvan M P 🔗

Developer, cloud engineer, and technical writer

  • Experience 12 years building web and cloud systems
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I write practical tutorials so students and working developers can learn by doing—from databases and APIs to deployment on AWS.

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