Upwards harpoon with barb leftwards (↿) is the Unicode character at U+21BF in Arrows. Official name: UPWARDS HARPOON WITH BARB LEFTWARDS — an up-pointing harpoon with a left-side barb, common in math and vector notation.
Remember
Character ↿
Unicode U+21BF
Named entity ↿
Hex entity ↿
Decimal ↿
CSS escape \21BF
Not the same ↾ · ↑ · ⥜
Prefer ↿ in HTML markup. Numeric forms and typing ↿ in UTF-8 also work. For the barb-right sibling, use ↾ (↾).
Using Named Entity: ↿
Using Hex Code: ↿
Using HTML Code: ↿
Using CSS Entity: ↿
Typed directly: ↿
Label: Vector ↿
How It Works
1. Named:↿ is the clearest HTML form for U+21BF.
2. Hex:U+21BF → ↿ in HTML. Same glyph as the named entity.
3. Decimal: same code point as 8639 → ↿. Same glyph as hex and named.
4. CSS: use \21BF in content (not an HTML entity). #point::after appends that ↿ after the paragraph text.
5. Typed / label: paste ↿ in UTF-8, or write Vector ↿ for a short math label.
Pitfalls & Tips
Common mistakes when working with U+21BF.
vs ↾
Not barb right
↾ (↾) has the barb on the right. Do not swap ↿ and ↾.
vs ⥜
Not the “to bar” form
⥜ (U+295C) is upwards harpoon with barb left to bar. U+21BF has no bar on the shaft tip.
Name
Remember ↿
The name hints at up harpoon left. Prefer ↿ over inventing names like ↿.
Fonts
Needs Arrows coverage
Most math fonts include this harpoon. If a UI font omits it, fall back to a symbols-capable stack.
CSS vs HTML
Do not mix escapes
\21BF belongs in CSS strings. ↿ / ↿ / ↿ belong in HTML.
A11y
Name the relation in context
Screen readers may announce this unevenly. Prefer nearby plain-language text such as “up harpoon left” when the symbol carries meaning.
Compatibility
Browser Support
Up harpoon barb left (U+21BF) and its entity forms (↿, ↿, ↿, CSS \\21BF) are supported in all mainstream browsers. Visible glyphs depend on Arrows font coverage.
✓ Universal support
Up Harpoon Barb Left (↿)
Encode with named, hex, decimal, CSS escape, or type the character — same code point everywhere encoding is supported.
100%Browser coverage
Google ChromeSupported
Yes
Microsoft EdgeSupported
Yes
Mozilla FirefoxSupported
Yes
Apple SafariSupported
Yes
OperaSupported
Yes
Internet ExplorerAll versions
Yes
U+21BF / ↿Full support
Bottom line: Prefer ↿ in HTML. Use \\21BF only inside CSS content. Do not confuse with ↾ (↾).
Remember
Key Takeaways
Unicode: up harpoon barb left is U+21BF (decimal 8639) — glyph ↿.
HTML: prefer ↿ — also ↿ / ↿.
CSS: use \21BF inside content for generated text.
Meaning:↿ barb left — not ↾ (↾), not ↑ (↑).
Use ↿ (named), ↿ (hex), ↿ (decimal), type ↿ directly in UTF-8, or the CSS escape \21BF in content. Prefer ↿ in normal HTML.
U+21BF (UPWARDS HARPOON WITH BARB LEFTWARDS). Hex 21BF, decimal 8639. It belongs to Arrows (U+2190–U+21FF).
Yes. Use ↿ (or ↿). Numeric forms ↿ and ↿ also work.
No. ↿ is U+21BF (↿, barb left). ↾ is U+21BE (↾, barb right). ↑ is U+2191 (↑, plain up).
Use it in math or vector diagrams that need an up harpoon with a left barb — not as a substitute for a plain up arrow ↑.
HTML entities (↿, ↿, or ↿) go in markup. The CSS escape \21BF goes in stylesheet strings (usually content on ::before/::after).
🤔
Did you know?
Upwards harpoon with barb leftwards is Unicode U+21BF (decimal 8639) — glyph ↿ in Arrows (U+2190–U+21FF). HTML5 names it ↿ (also ↿). Official name: UPWARDS HARPOON WITH BARB LEFTWARDS. Do not confuse with barb-right sibling U+21BE (↾, ↾) or “to bar” form U+295C (⥜).
