CyberDefinitions.com

Capital Letter a with Diaeresis (Ä)

Codes for the "Capital-Letter-a-with-Diaeresis" Symbol

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Formal Name:
Latin Capital Letter a with Diaeresis
The symbol:
Ä
The Alt Code:
Alt 196
The HTML Code:
Ä
HTML Entity:
Ä
CSS Code:
\00C4
Hex Code:
Ä
Unicode:
U+00C4
Latin-Capital-Letter-a-with-Diaeresis

"A" with a Diaeresis Explained

The letter "a" with a diaeresis (ä) is used in several languages, including German, Swedish, Finnish, Estonian, and Hungarian, to represent a different sound or vowel quality than the unaccented letter "a". Here are ten examples of when the letter "a" with diaeresis is used:
  • In German, the letter "ä" represents a fronted, unrounded /ɛ/ sound. For example, "Mädchen" (girl) is pronounced "MÄD-chen", with the "ä" sound similar to the "e" sound in the English word "bed."
  • In Swedish, the letter "ä" represents a fronted, unrounded /ɛ/ sound as well. For example, "bära" (to carry) is pronounced "BEH-ra", with the "ä" sound similar to the "e" sound in the English word "bet."
  • In Finnish, the letter "ä" represents a fronted, unrounded /æ/ sound. For example, "läpi" (through) is pronounced "LAE-pi", with the "ä" sound similar to the "a" sound in the English word "cat."
  • In Estonian, the letter "ä" represents a fronted, unrounded /æ/ sound as well. For example, "päev" (day) is pronounced "PAE-v", with the "ä" sound similar to the "a" sound in the English word "cat."
  • In Hungarian, the letter "ä" represents a fronted, unrounded /ɛ/ sound. For example, "téma" (topic) is pronounced "TEH-muh", with the "ä" sound similar to the "e" sound in the English word "bed."
  • In Finnish, the letter "ä" also indicates that the vowel is a separate syllable from the preceding vowel. For example, "kauppa" (store) is pronounced "KAU-pa", with the "ä" forming its own syllable.
  • In some romanization systems, such as the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), the letter "ä" is used to represent a fronted, unrounded vowel sound in other languages, such as Finnish and Estonian.
  • In some loanwords from German, such as "Männer" (men) and "Führer" (leader), the letter "ä" is used in English to represent the fronted, unrounded vowel sound.
  • In some loanwords from French, such as "naïve" and "maïs," the letter "ä" is used to indicate that the two vowels are pronounced separately, rather than forming a diphthong.
  • In some personal or place names, such as "Häagen-Dazs" and "Mäkinen," the letter "ä" is used for historical or branding reasons, rather than to indicate a specific sound or vowel quality.

Alternative Names

The letter "a" with a diaeresis (ä) can also be called "a-umlaut" or "a with an umlaut." In some languages, such as German, it may be referred to as "a mit Umlaut" or "a-diaeresis." In Swedish, it is called "a med trema." In Finnish, it may be referred to as "a kirjaimen treema," and in Estonian, it is called "a-täpp." In some linguistic contexts, it may also be called "a with two dots" or "a with double dots."

Test Your Knowledge of the Accented Letters

Here is a quick quiz to test your knowledge of the accented letters.
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View the Symbol in Different Sizes and Fonts

ABC Ä 123
ABC Ä 123
AttributeSettingChange
Font Size
Font Family
Arial
Color/Colour
#000000
 
 
 

Video Explaining How to Insert Special Symbols

This video explains 7 ways to insert a special symbol into an MS Office application (e.g., Word) or a website using HTML, CSS, or JavaScript:

How To Insert the Ä Symbol

(Method 1) Copy and paste the symbol.

Click on the Ä symbol from the table above. Press the "Copy" button, and then paste the symbol into your document.

(Method 2) Use the "Alt Code."

The Alt Code for Ä is Alt 196. If you have a keyboard with a numeric pad, you can use this method. Simply hold down the Alt Key and type 196. When you lift the Alt Key, Ä appears. ("Num Lock" must be on.)

(Method 3) Use the HTML Decimal Code (for webpages).

HTML TextOutput
ÄÄ

(Method 4) Use the HTML Entity Code (for webpages).

HTML TextOutput
ÄÄ

(Method 5) Use the CSS Code (for webpages).

CSS and HTML TextOutput
<style>
span:after {
content: "\00C4";}
</style>
<span>Symbol:</span>
Symbol: Ä

(Method 6) Use the HTML Hex Code (for webpages and HTML canvas).

HTML TextOutput
&#xC4;Ä
On the assumption that you already have your canvas and the context set up, use the Hex code in the format 0xC4 to place the Ä symbol on your canvas. For example:
JavaScript Text
const x = "0x"+"C4"
ctx.fillText(String.fromCodePoint(x), 5, 5);
Output

Ä

(Method 7) Use the Unicode (for various, e.g. Microsoft Office, JavaScript, Perl).

The Unicode for Ä is U+00C4. The important part is the hexadecimal number after the U+, which is used in various formats. For example, in Microsoft Office applications (e.g. Word, PowerPoint), do the following:
TypeOutput
00C4
[Hold down Alt]
[Press x]
Ä
(Note that you can omit any leading zeros.)
In JavaScript, the syntax is \uXXXX. So, our example would be \u00C4. (Note that the format is 4 hexadecimal characters.)
JavaScript TextOutput
let str = "\u00C4"
document.write("My symbol: " + str)
My symbol: Ä

(Method 8) Use an Image (for various).

HTML TextOutput
<img src = "myImg.png"/>Ä

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