HTML Entity for Lowercase Ou (ȣ)

Q: How do I display the lowercase ou ligature (ȣ) in HTML?

Use ȣ (hex), ȣ (decimal), or \0223 in CSS content. There is no named HTML entity for ȣ. In UTF-8 you can also type ȣ directly.

Q: What is the Unicode value for the lowercase ou ligature?

U+0223 (LATIN SMALL LETTER OU) in the Latin Extended-B block. Hex 0223, decimal 547. A single precomposed ou ligature glyph—not the same as typing o and u as two separate letters. Uppercase form is U+0222 (Ȣ).

Q: When should I use the lowercase ou ligature in HTML?

When displaying medieval Latin ligatures, some African language orthographies, linguistic or phonetic notation, critical editions, or any content that requires the single-character ou ligature rather than the digraph ou.

Q: Is there a named HTML entity for lowercase ou?

No. There is no named HTML entity for ȣ. Use numeric codes ȣ or ȣ, or the CSS entity \0223. In UTF-8 pages you can type ȣ directly.

Q: What's the difference between ȣ and typing ou as two letters?

ȣ (U+0223) is one Unicode character—a ligature glyph. Typing o followed by u is two separate code points. They look similar in some fonts but are not interchangeable in scholarly, linguistic, or encoded text.

Beginner

⏱️ 5 min read

📚 Updated: Jun 2026

🎯 1 Code Example

Unicode U+0223

HTML Entity for Lowercase Ou tutorial illustration

What You'll Learn

How to display the lowercase ou ligature (ȣ) in HTML using hexadecimal, decimal, and CSS escape methods. This character is U+0223 in the Latin Extended-B block—a single precomposed glyph that joins the letters o and u into one ligature.

Render it with ȣ, ȣ, or CSS escape \0223. There is no named HTML entity. In UTF-8 documents you can also type ȣ directly. It appears in medieval Latin, some African language orthographies, and linguistic notation—not to be confused with typing “ou” as two separate letters, with ö, or with ø.

⚡ Quick Reference — Lowercase Ou Entity

Unicode U+0223

Latin Extended-B

Hex Code ȣ

Hexadecimal reference

HTML Code ȣ

Decimal reference

Named Entity —

No named entity

Reference Table

Name           Value
────────────   ──────────
Unicode        U+0223
Hex code       &#x0223;
HTML code      &#547;
Named entity   (none)
CSS code       \0223
Meaning        Latin small letter ou (ligature)
Related        U+0222 = Ȣ (uppercase)
Block          Latin Extended-B (U+0180–U+024F)

Complete HTML Example

A simple example showing the lowercase ou ligature (ȣ) using hexadecimal code, decimal HTML code, the character directly, and a CSS content escape:

html

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
 <style>
  #point:after{
   content: "\0223";
  }
 </style>
</head>
<body>
<p>Symbol (hex): &#x0223;</p>
<p>Symbol (decimal): &#547;</p>
<p>Symbol (direct): ȣ</p>
<p id="point">Symbol (CSS): </p>
</body>
</html>

Try It Yourself

🌐 Browser Support

The lowercase ou ligature (ȣ) is supported in all modern browsers as part of Latin Extended-B:

Chrome1+

Firefox1+

Safari1+

Edge12+

Opera4+

Android4.4+

iOS Safari1+

👀 Live Preview

See the lowercase ou ligature (ȣ) in scholarly and notation contexts:

Large glyphȣ

Unicode nameLatin small letter ou

UsageMedieval Latin ligatures, African orthographies, linguistic notation

UppercaseȢ (U+0222) — LATIN CAPITAL LETTER OU

Not the same aso + u (two letters) | ö (umlaut) | ø (stroke)

Noteȣ is one code point—not the digraph “ou” typed as two characters

Numeric refsȣ ȣ \0223

🧠 How It Works

Hexadecimal Code

ȣ uses the Unicode hexadecimal value 0223 to display the character. The x prefix indicates hexadecimal format.

HTML markup

Decimal HTML Code

ȣ uses the decimal Unicode value 547 to display the same character. A common method when a numeric reference is needed.

HTML markup

Direct Character

Type ȣ directly in HTML when your document uses UTF-8 encoding. There is no named entity for this ligature.

HTML markup

CSS Entity

\0223 is used in CSS stylesheets, particularly in the content property of pseudo-elements like ::before and ::after.

CSS stylesheet

Same visual result

All methods produce the glyph: ȣ. Unicode U+0223 sits in Latin Extended-B. Uppercase equivalent: U+0222 (Ȣ). Do not confuse with the digraph “ou”, ö (umlaut), or ø (stroke).

✅

Use Cases

The lowercase ou ligature (ȣ) is commonly used in:

📜 Medieval Latin

Critical editions and transcriptions that preserve historical ou ligatures in Latin manuscripts.

🇮🇪 African orthographies

Some West and Central African language writing systems that use the ou ligature as a distinct letter.

🔤 Linguistics

Phonetic transcription, dictionaries, and language documentation requiring the single-character ou unit.

📚 Academic publishing

Scholarly papers, Unicode references, and character-set documentation that display ȣ correctly.

🎨 Typography

Font specimens showcasing Latin Extended-B ligature support in design systems.

♿ Accessibility

Using U+0223 ensures screen readers and assistive technologies interpret the ligature as one character.

⚙ Programmatic HTML

When building HTML from encoded text, ȣ or ȣ guarantees correct output.

💡 Best Practices

Do

Serve pages as UTF-8; you can type ȣ directly in UTF-8 source
Use numeric references (ȣ or ȣ) when escaping is required
Use ȣ when the source text specifies the ou ligature character
Choose fonts that support Latin Extended-B (U+0180–U+024F)
Distinguish ȣ from ö (umlaut), ø (stroke), and the digraph “ou”

Don’t

Substitute two letters “ou” when ȣ is the correct encoded character
Use ȣ for German ö or Nordic ø—those are different letters
Expect a named HTML entity—none exists for ȣ
Put CSS escape \0223 in HTML text nodes
Confuse U+0223 with U+0233 (Latin small letter o with macron, ȳ)

Key Takeaways

Type ȣ directly, or use hex/decimal references

ȣ ȣ

For CSS stylesheets, use the escape in the content property

\0223

Unicode U+0223 — LATIN SMALL LETTER OU (ligature)

Medieval Latin, African orthographies & linguistics; uppercase is Ȣ (U+0222)

Previous: Lowercase O Umlaut (ö) Next: Lowercase P

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

How do I display the lowercase ou ligature (ȣ) in HTML?

Use ȣ (hex), ȣ (decimal), or \0223 in CSS content. There is no named HTML entity for ȣ. In UTF-8 you can also type ȣ directly.

What is the Unicode value for the lowercase ou ligature?

U+0223 (LATIN SMALL LETTER OU). Latin Extended-B block. Hex 0223, decimal 547. A single precomposed ou ligature—not the same as typing o and u separately. Uppercase form is U+0222 (Ȣ).

When should I use the lowercase ou ligature in HTML?

When displaying medieval Latin ligatures, African language orthographies, linguistic or phonetic notation, critical editions, or any content that requires the single-character ou ligature rather than the digraph “ou.”

Is there a named HTML entity for lowercase ou?

No. Use numeric codes ȣ or ȣ, or the CSS entity \0223. In UTF-8 pages you can type ȣ directly.

What’s the difference between ȣ and typing ou as two letters?

ȣ (U+0223) is one Unicode character—a ligature glyph. Typing o followed by u is two separate code points. They may look similar in some fonts but are not interchangeable in scholarly, linguistic, or encoded text.

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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

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AWS Certified Developer – Associate (Credly)

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Lowercase O Umlaut (ö) Lowercase P

HTML Entity for Lowercase Ou (ȣ)

What You'll Learn

⚡ Quick Reference — Lowercase Ou Entity

Complete HTML Example

🌐 Browser Support

👀 Live Preview

🧠 How It Works

Hexadecimal Code

Decimal HTML Code

Direct Character

CSS Entity

Same visual result

Use Cases

💡 Best Practices

Do

Don’t

Key Takeaways

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

🧩 Related HTML Topics

Explore More HTML Entities!

About the author