Katakana Letter Small A Letter
ァ is the small Katakana letter “a” used in Japanese writing to indicate modified sounds.
U+30A1
ァ (KATAKANA LETTER SMALL A) is a small Katakana character: it looks like a compact “a.” It’s useful when you need precise Japanese text rendering in design, writing, or UI code.
Katakana Letter Small A Letter Meaning
ァ (U+30A1) is the small form of the Katakana “a” sound. In Japanese, small kana commonly affect how a word is pronounced or how a borrowed term is spelled in Katakana. Because it is smaller than a full “ア,” using ァ can change the reading and spacing compared with ア. It’s most often encountered as part of sound patterns in loanwords and spelling conventions, where a small vowel or modified pronunciation is represented with a small kana character.
Common uses
- •Writing Japanese loanwords where a small “a” pronunciation is specified
- •Labeling or naming products and services in Katakana spelling
- •Typography and UI text where spacing and kana size must match reference text
- •Design mockups requiring accurate Japanese characters for branding
- •Developer use in forms, chat, or content systems that store/display Japanese text
Examples
ァ - Katakana letter small a (U+30A1)
- ァファ
- ァティーァ
- ァサァビス
- ァパーティーァ
- ァキャァ
Variations
Technical codes
| Unicode | U+30A1 | |
| HTML Entity | ァ | |
| HTML Code | ァ | |
| CSS | \30A1 | |
| Alt Code | Alt + 12449 | |
| Decimal | 12449 |
How to type Katakana Letter Small A Letter (ァ)
On Windows
Hold Alt and type 12449 on the numeric keypad. In Word, type 30A1 then press Alt + X.
On Mac
Switch to the Unicode Hex Input keyboard, then hold Option and type 30A1. Or press Control + Command + Space and search.
On Linux
Press Control + Shift + U, type 30a1, then press Enter or Space.
Anywhere
Copy ァ with the button above and paste it wherever you need it — this works on every device and in every app, with no keyboard shortcut to remember.
FAQ
What does the Katakana Letter Small A letter mean?
ァ (U+30A1) is the small form of the Katakana “a” sound. In Japanese, small kana commonly affect how a word is pronounced or how a borrowed term is spelled in Katakana. Because it is smaller than a full “ア,” using ァ can change the reading and spacing compared with ア. It’s most often encountered as part of sound patterns in loanwords and spelling conventions, where a small vowel or modified pronunciation is represented with a small kana character.
What Unicode character is ァ?
ァ is KATAKANA LETTER SMALL A with Unicode code point U+30A1.
How do I copy ァ in HTML?
You can use the HTML entity: ァ.
What are the code escapes for ァ?
CSS escape: \\30A1. JavaScript (Unicode code point escape): \\u{30A1}.
How is ァ different from ア?
ァ is the small Katakana “a,” while ア is the regular-sized “a.” The size difference is used in Japanese orthography to represent the intended sound and spacing.