German umlauts and sharp s

Quick copy

Details for U+00E4

LATIN SMALL LETTER A WITH DIAERESIS

Exact sequence: ä

U+00E4

Properties: Ll; CCC 0
HTML: ä
Word Alt+X: 00E4
Normalization: NFC: U+00E4; NFD: U+0061 U+0308; NFKC: U+00E4; NFKD: U+0061 U+0308

Details for U+00D6

LATIN CAPITAL LETTER O WITH DIAERESIS

Exact sequence: Ö

U+00D6

Properties: Lu; CCC 0
HTML: Ö
Word Alt+X: 00D6
Normalization: NFC: U+00D6; NFD: U+004F U+0308; NFKC: U+00D6; NFKD: U+004F U+0308

Click a character to copy it. Use Details for its technical record.

The German umlaut letters are ä, ö and ü, with capitals Ä, Ö and Ü. Their two dots share an encoding with the diaeresis used in other languages, but their German role is not simply to separate adjacent vowels. [22], [3]

Copy exact examples

Details for U+0061 U+0308

LATIN SMALL LETTER A + COMBINING DIAERESIS

Exact sequence: ä

U+0061 U+0308

Details for U+00FC

LATIN SMALL LETTER U WITH DIAERESIS

Exact sequence: ü

U+00FC

Details for U+00DF

LATIN SMALL LETTER SHARP S

Exact sequence: ß

U+00DF

Details for U+1E9E

LATIN CAPITAL LETTER SHARP S

Exact sequence: ẞ

U+1E9E

Spelling and status

German spelling treats these as vowel letters. Sharp s, ß, is a different letter and has no umlaut. The official rules provide the capital form ẞ as well as replacement by SS in capital writing. Choosing ß or ss in a word is a spelling decision, not a visual preference. [22], [3]

Distinctions to preserve

Copy the spelling needed for the word or name. Compatibility normalization does not turn ä into ae or ß into ss. A search system may choose such substitutions, but that is a separate transformation and can lose distinctions. A spacing diaeresis beside u does not encode ü. [22], [3], [1], [2]

Typing and text forms

Copying is exact; preview circles are excluded. Compare normalization forms.

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Mac and mobile: Hold a letter for supported variants; use Character Viewer on Mac or a language keyboard on mobile.
HTML: Use UTF-8 text or the numeric references in Details, in order.

Full typing instructions ·HTML, CSS and JavaScript entry ·Verified Alt codes.

Searchable character table

The collection contains the distinctive letters and marked forms discussed here, with both cases where applicable. It is a focused copying reference, not the complete alphabet. [22], [3], [9], [1]

German umlauts and sharp s: exact character records
Copy	Unicode identity and entry
	LATIN SMALL LETTER O WITH DIAERESIS Details Properties `Ll; CCC 0` HTML `ö` Word Alt+X `00F6` Normalization `NFC: U+00F6; NFD: U+006F U+0308; NFKC: U+00F6; NFKD: U+006F U+0308`
	LATIN SMALL LETTER U WITH DIAERESIS Details Properties `Ll; CCC 0` HTML `ü` Word Alt+X `00FC` Normalization `NFC: U+00FC; NFD: U+0075 U+0308; NFKC: U+00FC; NFKD: U+0075 U+0308`
	LATIN CAPITAL LETTER A WITH DIAERESIS Details Properties `Lu; CCC 0` HTML `Ä` Word Alt+X `00C4` Normalization `NFC: U+00C4; NFD: U+0041 U+0308; NFKC: U+00C4; NFKD: U+0041 U+0308`
	LATIN CAPITAL LETTER U WITH DIAERESIS Details Properties `Lu; CCC 0` HTML `Ü` Word Alt+X `00DC` Normalization `NFC: U+00DC; NFD: U+0055 U+0308; NFKC: U+00DC; NFKD: U+0055 U+0308`
	LATIN SMALL LETTER SHARP S Details Properties `Ll; CCC 0` HTML `ß` Word Alt+X `00DF` Normalization `NFC: U+00DF; NFD: U+00DF; NFKC: U+00DF; NFKD: U+00DF`
	LATIN CAPITAL LETTER SHARP S Details Properties `Lu; CCC 0` HTML `ẞ` Word Alt+X `1E9E` Normalization `NFC: U+1E9E; NFD: U+1E9E; NFKC: U+1E9E; NFKD: U+1E9E`

Sources and method

Usage statements link to the authority that supports their scope. Character names, categories, combining classes and normalization results come from the pinned Unicode data. A canonical decomposition does not establish language membership or spelling frequency.

Source access date: 2026-09-14.

[22] Council for German Orthography: official rules, 2024. German vowel letters, umlaut spelling, sharp s and capitalization.
[3] Unicode 17: Latin, Greek and combining marks. Sections 7.1, 7.2, 7.8 and 7.9: encoded distinctions, script conventions and glyph variation, not a complete orthography.
[1] Unicode Character Database 17.0.0.
[2] Unicode normalization, UAX #15.
[9] CLDR 48.2 locale exemplars. Supplementary inventory checks against direct main and auxiliary exemplar sets. Exemplars do not establish full spelling or pronunciation rules.
[10] Microsoft: Unicode character entry in Word.
[11] Apple: enter characters with accent marks.
[12] Google: use Gboard.
[13] Unicode: fonts and keyboards FAQ.
[14] HTML numeric character references.

Read the editorial method and inspect the underlying datasets.

Sources, versions and limits

Encoded properties: Properties use Unicode 17.0.0. Normalization follows UAX #15; grapheme boundaries follow UAX #29. Script associations describe encoded properties, not language use.
Language evidence: CLDR 48.2and the IANA registry dated 2026-08-08. Main and auxiliary exemplars are distinct. CLDR exemplars are not complete orthographies.
Review and limitations: The dataset is derived from the sources above. Editorial guides cite additional scoped authorities. No native or specialist orthography approval is implied. Release scope date: 14 September 2026. Historic or specialist usage needs separate evidence. Registry-only records have unknown orthography in this release.
Reproduction and corrections: Downloads and licences · Coverage and held routes · Suggest a source-backed correction