U+02BC "ʼ" Modifier Letter Apostrophe Unicode Character

U+02BC "ʼ" Modifier Letter Apostrophe is a distinct typographic mark that serves as a diacritical modifier in various writing systems, most notably used in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) to represent a glottal stop or ejective consonant. Unlike the standard punctuation apostrophe (U+0027), which is primarily used for contractions and possessives, this character functions as a phonetic letter and is crucial for accurate transcription in languages such as Hawaiian, where it is called the ʻokina, and in the transcription of certain African and Native American languages. Its inclusion in Unicode ensures that digital text can preserve the precise linguistic meaning intended, preventing confusion with apostrophes that might alter pronunciation or word structure.