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<h2 id="usage-as-a-letter-variant-in-various-languages">Usage as a letter variant in various languages</h2> <p>In many languages, ⟨ç⟩ represents the "soft" sound /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_alveolar_fricative/WLKtEYDe">s</a>/ where a ⟨c⟩ would normally represent the "hard" sound /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_velar_plosive/dDppVb6e">k</a>/. These include: </p> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Catalan_language/W2uTbK8Q">Catalan</a>. Known as <i>ce trencada</i> ('broken C') in this language, where it can be used before ⟨a⟩, ⟨o⟩, ⟨u⟩ or at the end of a word. Some examples of words with ⟨ç⟩ are <i>amenaça</i> ('menace'), <i>torçat</i> ('twisted'), <i>xoriço</i> ('chorizo'), <i>forçut</i> ('strong'), <i>dolç</i> ('sweet') and <i>caça</i> ('hunting'). The only two words starting with <i>ç</i> that can be found in the dictionary are <i>ço</i> ('this') and <i>ça</i> ('here'), which are rarely used, except for some expressions like <i>ço que</i> ('which'). A well-known word with this character is <i>Barça</i>, a common Catalan clipping of <a href="/facts/FC_Barcelona/x2H1EFug">Futbol Club Barcelona</a>. When writing by hand, Catalans don't write <i>ç</i> with a cedilla under it, but a symbol similar to a comma, which crosses the <i>c</i> (called <i>trenc</i>).<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:1" href="#fn:1"><sup>1</sup></a> In fact, some scholars like Jesús Alturo claim that <i>ce trencada</i> evolved from combining <i>c</i> and <i>i</i> (written ci) instead of the letter <i>z</i>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a></li> <li><a href="/facts/French_language/qe1DnaQh">French</a> (<i>cé cédille</i>): <i>français</i> ('French'), <i>garçon</i> ('boy'), <i>façade</i> ('frontage'), <i>grinçant</i> ('squeaking'), <i>leçon</i> ('lesson'), <i>reçu</i> ('received' [past participle]). French does not use the character at the end of a word but it can occur at the beginning of a word (e.g., <i>ça</i>, 'that').<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a> It is never used in French where C would denote /s/ (before e, i, y) nor before h.</li> <li><a href="/facts/Occitan_language/w0etTc3w">Occitan</a> (<i>ce cedilha</i>): <i>torçut</i> ('twisted'), <i>çò</i> ('this'), <i>ça que la</i> ('nevertheless'), <i>braç</i> ('arm'), <i>brèç</i> ('cradle'), <i>voraç</i> ('voracious'). It can occur at the beginning or end of words.</li> <li><a href="/facts/Portuguese_language/vr3Fwzw3">Portuguese</a> (<i>cê-cedilha</i>, <i>cê de cedilha</i> or <i>cê cedilhado</i>): it is used before ⟨a⟩, ⟨o⟩, ⟨u⟩: <i>taça</i> ('cup'), <i>braço</i> ('arm'), <i>açúcar</i> ('sugar'). Modern Portuguese does not use the character at the beginning or at the end of a word (the nickname for <i>Conceição</i> is <i>São</i>, not <i>Ção</i>). According to a Portuguese grammar written in 1550, the letter ç had the sound of /dz/ around that time. Another grammar written around 1700 would say that the letter ç sounds like /s/, which shows a phonetic evolution that is still valid today.</li> <li><a href="/facts/Galician-Portuguese/vJ9lKYzS">Old Galician</a> used the ç letter, however it is no longer present in the official norm for the <a href="/facts/Galician_language/bGIhIvMX">Galician language</a> by the <a href="/facts/Royal_Galician_Academy/qsxrs0uE">Royal Galician Academy</a>. However, the unofficial norm for the Galician language by the <a href="/facts/Galician_Language_Association/9jer4YJQ">AGAL</a> reclaims the ç as part of the language.</li> <li><a href="/facts/Old_Spanish/PJjJbBDl">Old Spanish</a> used ç to represent /t͡s/.</li> <li><a href="/facts/Middle_Spanish/pRBLHxYh">Early Modern Spanish</a> used the letter ç to represent either /θ/ or /s/ before /a/, /o/, and /u/ in much the same way as <a href="/facts/Spanish_language/95BgYNfv">Modern Spanish</a> uses the letter z. Middle <a href="/facts/Castilian_Spanish/wwtnFwk9">Castilian Spanish</a> pronounced ç as /θ/. <a href="/facts/Andalusian_Spanish/sF7HYsRH">Andalusian</a>, <a href="/facts/Canarian_Spanish/ICmlxVIJ">Canarian</a>, and <a href="/facts/Latin_American_Spanish/zg4wWN9K">Latin American Spanish</a> pronounced ç as /s/. A spelling reform in the 18th century eliminated ç from <a href="/facts/Spanish_orthography/DNP7QG9J">Spanish orthography</a>.</li></ul> <p>In other languages, it represents the <a href="/facts/Voiceless_postalveolar_affricate/14FYMJvN">voiceless postalveolar affricate</a> /t͡ʃ/ (like ⟨ch⟩ in English <i>chalk</i>): </p> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Albanian_language/6CyC8GPJ">Albanian</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Turkish_language/C5X56Ijp">Turkish</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Friulian_language/2nFd3v8K">Friulian</a> (<i>c cun cedilie</i>) before ⟨a⟩, ⟨o⟩, ⟨u⟩ or at the end of a word.</li></ul> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Balinese_language/QCV3Y4Io">Balinese</a> Ç usually used to commemorate the Nyepi holiday only used in the word 'Çaka', for example:</li></ul> <p>"Selamat Hari Raya Nyepi tahun Çaka 1945" (Happy Nyepi Day in Çaka 1945)The pronunciation is similar to the slavic S. </p> <ul><li>In <a href="/facts/Manx_language/lG7JMRr0">Manx</a> it is used in the <a href="/facts/Digraph_(orthography)/wp3UgEyU">digraph</a> ⟨çh⟩, which also represents /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_postalveolar_affricate/14FYMJvN">t͡ʃ</a>/, to differentiate it from normal ⟨ch⟩, which represents /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_velar_fricative/mrKPhobk">x</a>/.</li></ul> <h3>In loanwords only</h3> <ul><li>In <a href="/facts/Basque_alphabet/7Awejcam">Basque</a>, ⟨ç⟩ (known as <i>ze hautsia</i>) is used in the loanword <i><a href="/facts/Cura%25C3%25A7ao/upV1jGtJ">Curaçao</a></i>.</li> <li>In <a href="/facts/Dutch_language/yIB5lbsx">Dutch</a>, it can be found in some words from French and Portuguese, such as <i>façade</i>, <i>reçu</i>, <i>Provençaals</i> and <i>Curaçao</i>.</li> <li>In <a href="/facts/English_alphabet/mn9BMaDw">English</a>, ⟨ç⟩ is used in loanwords such as <i>façade</i> and <i><a href="/facts/Lima%25C3%25A7on/bKcmDTM1">limaçon</a></i> (although the <a href="/facts/Cedilla/W3Ux5jWa">cedilla</a> mark is often dropped: ⟨facade⟩, ⟨limacon⟩).</li></ul> <h2 id="as-a-separate-letter-in-various-languages">As a separate letter in various languages</h2> <p>It represents the <a href="/facts/Voiceless_postalveolar_affricate/14FYMJvN">voiceless postalveolar affricate</a> /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_postalveolar_affricate/14FYMJvN">t͡ʃ</a>/ in the following languages: </p> <ul><li>the 4th letter of the <a href="/facts/Albanian_alphabet/wm9IpWAL">Albanian alphabet</a>.</li> <li>the 4th letter of the <a href="/facts/Azerbaijani_alphabet/dNBYVrAd">Azerbaijani alphabet</a>.</li> <li>the 4th letter of the <a href="/facts/Dobrujan_Tatar_alphabet/8c84yIPu">Dobrujan Tatar alphabet</a>.</li> <li>the 4th letter of the <a href="/facts/Turkish_alphabet/Skpn0bkK">Turkish alphabet</a>.</li> <li>the 3rd letter of the <a href="/facts/Turkmen_alphabet/3rBSFBTB">Turkmen alphabet</a>.</li> <li>the 4th letter of the <a href="/facts/Kurmanji_alphabet/wCl6RAqJ">Kurmanji alphabet</a> (also known as Northern Kurdish).</li> <li>the 4th letter of the <a href="/facts/Zazaki/arqKp6CQ">Zazaki alphabet</a>.</li></ul> <p>In the 2020 version of the <a href="/facts/Kazakh_alphabet/0yhntQvY">Latin Kazakh Alphabet</a>, the letter represents the <a href="/facts/Voiceless_alveolo-palatal_affricate/vJeGxq3k">voiceless alveolo-palatal affricate</a> /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_alveolo-palatal_affricate/vJeGxq3k">tɕ</a>/, which is similar to /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_postalveolar_affricate/14FYMJvN">t͡ʃ</a>/. </p><p>It previously represented a <a href="/facts/Voiceless_palatal_click/AWn6eDve">voiceless palatal click</a> /<a href="/facts/Tenuis_palatal_click/AWn6eDve">ǂ</a>/ in <a href="/facts/Ju%25C7%2580%25CA%25BChoansi/w6oDgKYs">Juǀʼhoansi</a> and <a href="/facts/Naro_language/VnyJWhfv">Naro</a>, though the former has replaced it with ⟨ǂ⟩ and the latter with ⟨tc⟩. </p><p>The similarly shaped letter <a href="/facts/The_(Cyrillic)/ePLLjSNS">the</a> (Ҫ ҫ) is used in the Cyrillic alphabets of <a href="/facts/Bashkir_language/u1N82RGj">Bashkir</a> and <a href="/facts/Chuvash_language/2pvVW2sT">Chuvash</a> to represent /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_dental_fricative/hmQpb6pI">θ</a>/ and /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_alveolo-palatal_fricative/gwwPRsUU">ɕ</a>/, respectively. </p><p>In <a href="/facts/Tatar_language/PfbDcPds">Tatar</a>, ç represents /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_alveolo-palatal_fricative/gwwPRsUU">ɕ</a>/. </p><p>It also represents the <a href="/facts/Retroflex_flap/ClIesXP0">retroflex flap</a> /<a href="/facts/Voiced_retroflex_flap/ClIesXP0">ɽ</a>/ in the <a href="/facts/Rohingya_language/BphQJ0fq">Rohingya Latin alphabet</a>. </p><p><a href="/facts/Janalif/aHuGFCn3">Janalif</a> uses this letter to represent the <a href="/facts/Voiced_postalveolar_affricate/o7oYJUqz">voiced postalveolar affricate</a> /<a href="/facts/Voiced_postalveolar_affricate/o7oYJUqz">d͡ʒ</a>/ </p><p><a href="/facts/Old_Malay/8UfL22MY">Old Malay</a> uses ç to represent /<a href="/facts/Voiced_postalveolar_affricate/o7oYJUqz">dʒ</a>/ and /<a href="/facts/Voiced_palatal_nasal/dLa9YG49">ɲ</a>/. </p> <h2 id="computer">Computer</h2> Character information<table><tbody><tr><th scope="row">Preview</th><th colspan="2">Ç</th><th colspan="2">ç</th><th colspan="2">Ꝣ</th><th colspan="2">ꝣ</th></tr><tr><th>Unicode name</th><td colspan="2">LATIN CAPITAL LETTER C WITH CEDILLA</td><td colspan="2">LATIN SMALL LETTER C WITH CEDILLA</td><td colspan="2">LATIN CAPITAL LETTER VISIGOTHIC Z</td><td colspan="2">LATIN SMALL LETTER VISIGOTHIC Z</td></tr><tr><th>Encodings</th><th>decimal</th><th>hex</th><th>dec</th><th>hex</th><th>dec</th><th>hex</th><th>dec</th><th>hex</th></tr><tr><td><a href="/facts/Unicode/DDu3MfPV">Unicode</a></td><td>199</td><td>U+00C7</td><td>231</td><td>U+00E7</td><td>42850</td><td>U+A762</td><td>42851</td><td>U+A763</td></tr><tr><td><a href="/facts/UTF-8/xlaVHSyf">UTF-8</a></td><td>195 135</td><td>C3 87</td><td>195 167</td><td>C3 A7</td><td>234 157 162</td><td>EA 9D A2</td><td>234 157 163</td><td>EA 9D A3</td></tr><tr><td><a href="/facts/Numeric_character_reference/wCEzNIlC">Numeric character reference</a></td><td>Ç</td><td>Ç</td><td>ç</td><td>ç</td><td>Ꝣ</td><td>Ꝣ</td><td>ꝣ</td><td>ꝣ</td></tr><tr><td><a href="/facts/List_of_XML_and_HTML_character_entity_references/Pw0NWQLP">Named character reference</a></td><td colspan="2">Ç</td><td colspan="2">ç</td><td colspan="2"></td><td colspan="2"></td></tr></tbody></table> <h3>Input</h3> <p>On Albanian, Belgian, European French, Portuguese, Spanish, Swiss, Turkish and Italian keyboards, Ç is directly available as a separate key; however, on most other keyboards, including the US and British keyboard, a combination of keys must be used: </p> <ul><li>In the <a href="/facts/QWERTY/0DCjXEa9">US-International keyboard layout</a>, these are ' followed by either C or ⇧ Shift+C. Alternatively one may press <a href="/facts/AltGr/krEsBUjB">AltGr</a>+, or <a href="/facts/AltGr/krEsBUjB">AltGr</a>+⇧ Shift+,. The <a href="/facts/QWERTY/0DCjXEa9">Canadian French layout</a> has a dedicated dead key in the spot of the ] key.</li> <li>In <a href="/facts/Classic_Mac_OS/I5fQq44K">classic Mac OS</a> and <a href="/facts/MacOS/Y93vVpTm">macOS</a>, these are ⌥ Opt+C and ⌥ Opt+⇧ Shift+C for lower- and uppercase, respectively.</li> <li>In the <a href="/facts/X_Window_System/ac2vRIQL">X Window System</a> and many <a href="/facts/Unix/0pNL2seI">Unix</a> consoles, one presses sequentially <a href="/facts/Compose_key/RGMQ4P6A">Compose</a>, , and either C or ⇧ Shift+C. Alternatively, one may press <a href="/facts/AltGr/krEsBUjB">AltGr</a>+= and then either C or ⇧ Shift+C.</li> <li>In <a href="/facts/Microsoft_Windows/bwhAhuSL">Microsoft Windows</a>, these are Alt+0231 or Alt+135 for lowercase and Alt+0199 or Alt+128 for uppercase.</li> <li>In <a href="/facts/Microsoft_Word/HPSu5W4j">Microsoft Word</a>, these are Ctrl+, and then either C or ⇧ Shift+C.</li> <li>The <a href="/facts/HTML_character_entity_reference/Pw0NWQLP">HTML character entity references</a> are ç and Ç for lower- and uppercase, respectively.</li> <li>In <a href="/facts/TeX/8t3cCBqk">TeX</a> and <a href="/facts/LaTeX/c1lvjF0A">LaTeX</a>, \c is used for adding the <a href="/facts/Cedilla/W3Ux5jWa">cedilla</a> accent to a letter, so \c{c} produces "ç".</li></ul> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/%25D2%25B8/EgccyzQ7">Ҹ</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/%25E1%25B8%2588/XDHwqnvk">Ḉ</a></li></ul> Look up <i>Ç</i> or <i>ç</i> in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>"D'on ve la ce trencada? Els secrets d'una lletra documentada en català fa més de mil anys". 3Cat (in Catalan). 2024-03-03. Retrieved 2024-10-09. <a href="https://www.3cat.cat/324/don-ve-la-ce-trencada-els-secrets-duna-lletra-documentada-en-catala-fa-mes-de-mil-anys/noticia/3279891/" target="_blank">https://www.3cat.cat/324/don-ve-la-ce-trencada-els-secrets-duna-lletra-documentada-en-catala-fa-mes-de-mil-anys/noticia/3279891/</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Més 324 - Tània Alaix i Jesús Alturo: "Ramon de Cabó tenia una categoria cultural remarcable" (in Catalan). Retrieved 2024-10-09 – via 3cat. <a href="https://www.3cat.cat/3cat/tania-alaix-i-jesus-alturo-ramon-de-cabo-tenia-una-categoria-cultural-remarcable/video/6139344/" target="_blank">https://www.3cat.cat/3cat/tania-alaix-i-jesus-alturo-ramon-de-cabo-tenia-una-categoria-cultural-remarcable/video/6139344/</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>"D'on ve la ce trencada? Els secrets d'una lletra documentada en català fa més de mil anys". 3Cat (in Catalan). 2024-03-03. Retrieved 2024-10-09. <a href="https://www.3cat.cat/324/don-ve-la-ce-trencada-els-secrets-duna-lletra-documentada-en-catala-fa-mes-de-mil-anys/noticia/3279891/" target="_blank">https://www.3cat.cat/324/don-ve-la-ce-trencada-els-secrets-duna-lletra-documentada-en-catala-fa-mes-de-mil-anys/noticia/3279891/</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>The Académie Française online dictionary also gives çà and çûdra. <a href="/wiki/Acad%C3%A9mie_Fran%C3%A7aise" target="_blank">/wiki/Acad%C3%A9mie_Fran%C3%A7aise</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>