ƒ
Encyclopedia
The letter is a letter of the Latin alphabet
, based on the italic
form of f
; or on its regular form with a descender hook
added. A very similar-looking letter, ⟨ʄ⟩ (a turned f with a hook), is used in the IPA for a palatal implosive.
in a straight form to represent the sound ɸ, as distinct from the letter F, which represents an f.
, is used as a symbol for several currencies, including the former Dutch guilder, the Aruban florin
, and the Netherlands Antillean guilder. It can be found as italic in non-italic fonts.
The italic ƒ is, rarely, used to denote mathematical functions
, or to indicate aperture in photography (e.g. ƒ/2.8) in place of the more common italic f (in serif fonts) or oblique f (in sans-serif fonts). In modern typography an italic or oblique f is generally preferred for these applications.
and character encoding
s included only the minuscule form for its use as an abbreviation. Unicode
includes both the majuscule and the minuscule.
Because of its origin, the italic ƒ (f with a hook) looks exactly like the italic f (f) in some typefaces.
Ƒ and ƒ occupy code points U+191 and U+192 in Unicode
respectively, and may be entered by appropriate input methods.
On a computer running Microsoft Windows
and using the Windows-1252
character encoding, the minuscule can be input using .
The character has been used on the Macintosh
(where it is created by pressing ) to mean folder, in particular as part of a folder name (for example, the game Bugdom
, when included on some Mac OS 9
installations, had the folder name "Bugdom ƒ").
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
, based on the italic
Italic type
In typography, italic type is a cursive typeface based on a stylized form of calligraphic handwriting. Owing to the influence from calligraphy, such typefaces often slant slightly to the right. Different glyph shapes from roman type are also usually used—another influence from calligraphy...
form of f
F
F is the sixth letter in the basic modern Latin alphabet.-History:The origin of ⟨f⟩ is the Semitic letter vâv that represented a sound like or . Graphically, it originally probably depicted either a hook or a club...
; or on its regular form with a descender hook
Hook (diacritic)
In typesetting, the hook is a diacritic mark placed on top of vowels in the Vietnamese alphabet. In shape it looks like a tiny question mark without the dot underneath. For example, a capital A with a hook is "Ả", and a lower case "u" with a hook is "ủ". It functions as a tone marker...
added. A very similar-looking letter, ⟨ʄ⟩ (a turned f with a hook), is used in the IPA for a palatal implosive.
Regular
Ƒ is used in writing the Ewe languageEwe language
Ewe is a Niger–Congo language spoken in Ghana, Togo and Benin by approximately six million people. Ewe is part of a cluster of related languages commonly called Gbe, spoken in southeastern Ghana, Togo, and parts of Benin. Other Gbe languages include Fon, Gen, Phla Phera, and Aja...
in a straight form to represent the sound ɸ, as distinct from the letter F, which represents an f.
Italic
The minuscule italic ƒ, also called the florin signFlorin sign
The florin sign is a symbol that is used for the currencies named florin, also called a gulden or guilder. The symbol "ƒ" is the lowercase version of of the Latin alphabet. In Unicode it has a separate code point at...
, is used as a symbol for several currencies, including the former Dutch guilder, the Aruban florin
Aruban florin
The florin is the currency of Aruba. It is subdivided into 100 cents. The florin was introduced in 1986, replacing the Netherlands Antillean guilder at par.-History:...
, and the Netherlands Antillean guilder. It can be found as italic in non-italic fonts.
The italic ƒ is, rarely, used to denote mathematical functions
Function (mathematics)
In mathematics, a function associates one quantity, the argument of the function, also known as the input, with another quantity, the value of the function, also known as the output. A function assigns exactly one output to each input. The argument and the value may be real numbers, but they can...
, or to indicate aperture in photography (e.g. ƒ/2.8) in place of the more common italic f (in serif fonts) or oblique f (in sans-serif fonts). In modern typography an italic or oblique f is generally preferred for these applications.
Appearance in computer fonts
Older fontsTypeface
In typography, a typeface is the artistic representation or interpretation of characters; it is the way the type looks. Each type is designed and there are thousands of different typefaces in existence, with new ones being developed constantly....
and character encoding
Character encoding
A character encoding system consists of a code that pairs each character from a given repertoire with something else, such as a sequence of natural numbers, octets or electrical pulses, in order to facilitate the transmission of data through telecommunication networks or storage of text in...
s included only the minuscule form for its use as an abbreviation. Unicode
Unicode
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding, representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems...
includes both the majuscule and the minuscule.
Because of its origin, the italic ƒ (f with a hook) looks exactly like the italic f (f) in some typefaces.
Ƒ and ƒ occupy code points U+191 and U+192 in Unicode
Unicode
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding, representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems...
respectively, and may be entered by appropriate input methods.
On a computer running Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
and using the Windows-1252
Windows-1252
Windows-1252 or CP-1252 is a character encoding of the Latin alphabet, used by default in the legacy components of Microsoft Windows in English and some other Western languages. It is one version within the group of Windows code pages...
character encoding, the minuscule can be input using .
The character has been used on the Macintosh
Macintosh
The Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
(where it is created by pressing ) to mean folder, in particular as part of a folder name (for example, the game Bugdom
Bugdom
Bugdom is a third-person, action, platform computer game developed by Pangea Software for the Macintosh and was included with the iMac DV 2000 and later iBook models, as well as the PC by Gathering of Developers, and later Ideas From the Deep following the acquiring of Gathering via Take-Two...
, when included on some Mac OS 9
Mac OS 9
Mac OS 9 is the final major release of Apple's Mac OS before the launch of Mac OS X. Introduced on October 23, 1999, Apple positioned it as "The Best Internet Operating System Ever," highlighting Sherlock 2's Internet search capabilities, integration with Apple's free online services known as...
installations, had the folder name "Bugdom ƒ").