HTML Entity for Right Harpoon Barb Up (⇀)

Beginner
⏱️ 5 min read
📚 Updated: Jun 2026
🎯 1 Code Example
Unicode U+21C0

What You'll Learn

How to display the Right Harpoon Barb Up (⇀) in HTML using the named entity, hexadecimal, decimal, and CSS escape methods. This symbol is U+21C0 (RIGHTWARDS HARPOON WITH BARB UPWARDS) in the Arrows block (U+2190–U+21FF)—a right-pointing harpoon with the barb facing up, used in mathematical notation, category theory, functional programming, flow diagrams, and directional indicators.

Render it with ⇀ (named), ⇀, ⇀, or CSS \21C0. Related: U+21C1 (⇁, right harpoon barb down / ⇁), U+2192 (→, simple right arrow / →).

⚡ Quick Reference — Right Harpoon Barb Up

Unicode U+21C0

Arrows block

Hex Code ⇀

Hexadecimal reference

HTML Code ⇀

Decimal reference

Named Entity ⇀

Most readable option

Reference Table
Name           Value
────────────   ──────────
Unicode        U+21C0
Hex code       ⇀
HTML code      ⇀
Named entity   ⇀
CSS code       \21C0
Meaning        Rightwards harpoon with barb up
Related        U+21C1 = right harpoon barb down (⇁)
               U+2192 = right arrow (→)
1

Complete HTML Example

A simple example showing the Right Harpoon Barb Up (⇀) using the named entity, hexadecimal code, decimal HTML code, and a CSS content escape:

html
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
 <style>
  #point:after{
   content: "\21C0";
  }
 </style>
</head>
<body>
<p>Symbol using Hexadecimal: &#x21C0;</p>
<p>Symbol using HTML Code: &#8640;</p>
<p>Symbol using HTML Entity: &rharu;</p>
<p id="point">Symbol using CSS Entity: </p>
</body>
</html>
Try It Yourself

🌐 Browser Support

The Right Harpoon Barb Up (⇀) renders in modern browsers when the font includes Arrows block glyphs:

Chrome 1+
Firefox 1+
Safari 1+
Edge 12+
Opera 4+
Android 4.4+
iOS Safari 1+

👀 Live Preview

See the Right Harpoon Barb Up (⇀) in math and chemistry contexts:

Chemistry A ⇀ B
Math notation f ⇀ g
Flow diagram Step 1 ⇀ Step 2
Large glyph
Harpoon comparison ⇀ ⇁ ↼ →
Entity refs &rharu; &#x21C0; &#8640; \21C0

🧠 How It Works

1

Named HTML Entity

&rharu; is the named entity for the Right Harpoon Barb Up (rightwards harpoon with barb upwards). Easy to read in math and chemistry markup.

HTML markup
2

Hexadecimal Code

&#x21C0; uses the Unicode hexadecimal value 21C0. The x prefix indicates hexadecimal format.

HTML markup
3

Decimal HTML Code

&#8640; uses the decimal Unicode value 8640 for the same symbol.

HTML markup
4

CSS Entity

\21C0 is used in CSS stylesheets in the content property of pseudo-elements like ::after.

CSS stylesheet
=

Same visual result

All four methods produce . Unicode U+21C0 is in the Arrows block. Previous: Right Harpoon Barb Down Above Left Harpoon Barb Down.

Use Cases

The Right Harpoon Barb Up (⇀) is commonly used in:

⚗ Chemistry

Reversible reactions and equilibrium notation in chemical equations.

📐 Mathematics

Harpoon notation in math, logic, category theory, and scientific documents.

📊 Flow diagrams

Show direction or relationships with harpoon-style arrows.

📚 Technical docs

Illustrate specialized arrow symbols in guides and reference material.

🎯 Direction

Decorative or functional right harpoon in buttons, labels, and icons.

🗃 Entity reference

Document and teach HTML entity usage for Arrows block symbols.

💡 Best Practices

Do

  • Prefer &rharu; in HTML for readability
  • Use fonts that support the Arrows block (U+21C0)
  • Set <meta charset="utf-8">
  • Pair ⇀ with context (chemistry, math) so meaning is clear
  • Keep one encoding style per project for consistency
  • Distinguish ⇀ from ⇁ when barb up vs barb down matters

Don’t

  • Confuse &rharu; (U+21C0) with &rhard; (U+21C1, barb down)
  • Confuse &rharu; with &lharu; (U+21BC, left harpoon barb up)
  • Use CSS \21C0 inside HTML text nodes
  • Assume all fonts render harpoon glyphs identically
  • Mix named and numeric entities inconsistently in the same component

Key Takeaways

1

Four ways to render U+21C0 in HTML and CSS

&rharu; &#x21C0; &#8640;
2

For CSS, use \21C0 in the content property

3

Unicode U+21C0 — RIGHTWARDS HARPOON WITH BARB UPWARDS

4

Arrows block (U+2190–U+21FF) — named entity &rharu;

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

Use &rharu; (named), &#x21C0; (hex), &#8640; (decimal), or \21C0 in CSS content. All four methods render ⇀ correctly.
U+21C0 (RIGHTWARDS HARPOON WITH BARB UPWARDS). Arrows block (U+2190–U+21FF). Hex 21C0, decimal 8640. A right-pointing harpoon with the barb facing up.
In mathematical notation, chemistry (reversible reactions), flow diagrams, category theory, and any design that needs a rightwards harpoon with barb up.
Named and numeric HTML references (&rharu;, &#8640;, &#x21C0;) go in markup. The CSS escape \21C0 is used in stylesheets, typically on ::before or ::after. Both produce ⇀.
Yes. &rharu; is the named HTML entity for U+21C0. You can also use &#8640; (decimal) or &#x21C0; (hex) and \21C0 in CSS.

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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
  • 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.

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