U+10ACA "𐫊" Manichaean Letter Zhayin Unicode Character

U+10ACA "𐫊" Manichaean Letter Zhayin is a glyph from the Manichaean script, an abjad originally developed to write Middle Iranian languages such as Middle Persian, Parthian, and Sogdian, which were central to the Manichaean religion. This specific character represents the sound equivalent to the voiced postalveolar fricative, similar to the "zh" sound in English. It appears in the Manichaean block of the Unicode Standard, which was added to support the surviving manuscripts and inscriptions of this ancient script known for its elegant, cursive forms. The letter Zhayin is used in liturgical and historical texts to preserve the religious teachings of Mani, reflecting the cultural and linguistic heritage of the Manichaean communities along the Silk Road.