U+11596 "ð‘––" Siddham Letter Jha Unicode Character
U+11596 "ð‘––" Siddham Letter Jha is a character from the Siddham script, a historical abugida used primarily in East Asia for writing Buddhist texts, especially in Japan, where it is known as Shittan or Bonji. This particular letter represents the aspirated voiced palatal stop sound "jha" and belongs to a script that was developed in India around the 6th century CE before being transmitted along with esoteric Buddhist teachings to China, Korea, and Japan. The Siddham script is no longer used for everyday communication but survives in religious contexts, such as in mantra inscriptions, temple decorations, and calligraphic works, where it is valued for its aesthetic and sacred qualities. Its inclusion in Unicode helps preserve and digitize this ancient writing system for scholarly and cultural purposes.