HTML Entity for Lowercase I Umlaut (ï)

Beginner

5 min read

Updated: Sep 2026

1 example

Unicode U+00EF

HTML Entity for lowercase i umlaut (U+00EF) tutorial illustration

Definition

What Is the Lowercase I Umlaut Entity?

Lowercase i umlaut (ï) is the Latin-1 Supplement character at Unicode U+00EF (LATIN SMALL LETTER I WITH DIAERESIS). It is the letter i with two dots (diaeresis/umlaut) — common in French and Dutch to mark a separate vowel sound.

Remember

Character     ï
Unicode       U+00EF
Named entity  &iuml;
Hex entity    &#xEF;
Decimal       &#239;
CSS escape    \00EF
Capital       &Iuml; (Ï)

Named, hex, decimal, CSS, and a typed character all produce the same glyph: ï. Prefer ï in HTML source for clarity.

Reference

Quick Reference

One table for every form you will actually use.

Form	Code	Where it goes
Named entity	`ï`	HTML markup (best default)
Hex entity	`ï`	HTML markup
Decimal entity	`ï`	HTML markup
CSS escape	`\00EF`	Stylesheet `content`
Direct character	`ï`	UTF-8 HTML text

When to Use Which

Situation	Use
Readable HTML source	`ï`
Numeric entity required	`ï` or `ï`
Generated text via `::before` / `::after`	`content: "\00EF"`
Capital Ï	`Ï` — see Uppercase I Umlaut
I with tilde ĩ instead	See Lowercase I Tilde (`&itilde;`)

See it

Live Preview

Lowercase i umlaut in French, Dutch, and comparison contexts.

French sample naïf, Anaïs

Dutch sample geïnteresseerd

Large glyph ï

vs i / Ï / ĩ ï | i | Ï | ĩ

With entities Named: ï | Hex: ï | Decimal: ï

Code

Complete HTML Example

One page that shows this character with named, hex, decimal, and CSS forms. Use View Output or open the live editor.

Named + Hex + Decimal + CSS

Four ways to produce ï in a single document.

html

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <title>Lowercase I Umlaut (&iuml;)</title>
  <style>
    #point::after {
      content: "\00EF";
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <p>Using Named Entity: &iuml;</p>
  <p>Using Hex Code: &#xEF;</p>
  <p>Using HTML Code: &#239;</p>
  <p id="point">Using CSS Entity: </p>
  <p lang="fr">Français: na&iuml;f</p>
</body>
</html>

Try It Yourself

How It Works

1. Named: ï is the clearest HTML form and renders ï.

2. Hex: U+00EF → ï in HTML. Same result as the named entity.

3. Decimal: same code point as 239 → ï. Same result as hex.

4. CSS: use \00EF in content (not an HTML entity). #point::after appends that ï after the paragraph text.

Pitfalls & Tips

Common mistakes when working with lowercase i umlaut.

Case

`ï` ≠ `Ï`

Named entities are case-sensitive. Lowercase is ï; uppercase is Ï.

Look-alikes

Not í or ĩ

Diaeresis is two dots. Do not confuse ï with í (í) or &itilde; (ĩ).

Compose

Prefer precomposed

Use ï instead of i plus combining diaeresis (U+0308) when the precomposed form exists.

CSS vs HTML

Do not mix escapes

\00EF belongs in CSS. ï / ï / ï belong in HTML.

Encoding

Declare UTF-8

If you type ï directly, keep <meta charset="UTF-8"> so the file is not misread.

Semicolon

End references

Always finish with ; — write ï, not &iuml.

Compatibility

Browser Support

Lowercase i umlaut (U+00EF) and its entity forms (ï, ï, ï, CSS \\00EF) are supported in all modern browsers.

✓ Universal encoding

Lowercase I Umlaut (ï)

Encode with named, hex, decimal, or CSS escape — or type ï directly in UTF-8 HTML.

100% Browser coverage

Google Chrome Supported

Yes

Microsoft Edge Supported

Yes

Mozilla Firefox Supported

Yes

Apple Safari Supported

Yes

Opera Supported

Yes

Internet Explorer All versions

Yes

U+00EF Full support

Bottom line: Prefer ï for readable HTML. Use \\00EF only inside CSS content.

Remember

Key Takeaways

Unicode: this character is U+00EF (decimal 239).
HTML: prefer ï — or use ï / ï.
CSS: use \00EF inside content for generated text.
Watch out: ï ≠ Ï ≠ í.

One line: U+00EF → ï / ï / ï / CSS \00EF.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I display lowercase i umlaut (ï) in HTML using entities?

Use ï (named), ï (hex), ï (decimal), or the CSS escape \00EF in the content property. All render ï. Prefer ï in HTML source.

What is the Unicode value for lowercase i umlaut?

U+00EF (LATIN SMALL LETTER I WITH DIAERESIS). Hex EF, decimal 239. It belongs to Latin-1 Supplement (U+0080–U+00FF).

Is there a named HTML entity for U+00EF?

Yes. ï is the HTML5 named entity for ï. The capital form is Ï (Ï, U+00CF) — names are case-sensitive.

When should I use this HTML entity?

Use it for French (naïf, coïncidence, Anaïs), Dutch (geïnteresseerd), proper names, and other text where the diaeresis marks a separate vowel sound.

What is the difference between HTML code and CSS entity for U+00EF?

HTML entities (ï, ï, or ï) go in markup. The CSS escape \00EF is used in stylesheets (usually in the content property of ::before/::after). Both render ï.

Is ï the same as i + combining diaeresis?

Visually similar, but U+00EF is a precomposed character. Combining diaeresis is U+0308 after a base letter. Prefer the precomposed ï when available.

Did you know?

Lowercase i umlaut is Unicode U+00EF (decimal 239) — LATIN SMALL LETTER I WITH DIAERESIS in Latin-1 Supplement. HTML5 provides ï — the most readable form. Capital is Ï (Ï, U+00CF). Common in French (naïf, Anaïs) and Dutch (geïnteresseerd).

Next: Lowercase J

Learn the HTML entity for the lowercase letter j — next in this sequence.

Continue tutorial →

About the author

Mari Selvan M P 🔗

Developer, cloud engineer, and technical writer

Experience 12 years building web and cloud systems
Focus Full Stack Development, AWS, and Developer Education

I write practical tutorials so students and working developers can learn by doing—from databases and APIs to deployment on AWS.

AWS Certified Developer – Associate (Credly)

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