U+1B059 "𛁙" Hentaigana Letter So-3 Unicode Character

U+1B059 "𛁙" Hentaigana Letter So-3 is a historical variant of the Japanese hiragana character for the syllable "so," belonging to the set of hentaigana, or alternate cursive forms that were widely used before the modern standardization of Japanese writing in the early 20th century. This specific glyph, designated as "so-3" to distinguish it from other historical variations of "so," was derived from the cursive style of the Chinese character 楚 (meaning "thorn" or "clear") and reflects the complex brushstroke nuances common in premodern Japanese calligraphy. Although it is not used in contemporary Japanese text, it is encoded in Unicode to support the accurate representation and study of historical documents, manuscripts, and literature where hentaigana characters appear.