Roman Numerals in Unicode

Complete table of Roman numeral symbols in Unicode standard

All Roman Characters in Unicode

Unicode is an international character encoding standard that provides consistent encoding, representation and handling of text in nearly all writing systems of the world. It is developed by the Unicode Consortium, which includes leading technology companies such as Apple, Google, Microsoft and Meta, as well as academic institutions and international organizations.

Among the thousands of characters in the Unicode standard, there is also a complete set of Roman numeral characters. Most of them were introduced in Unicode version 1.1 (1993), with the rest added in version 5.1 (2008). Thanks to these characters, we can use Roman numerals as single symbols rather than sequences of letters.

The table below contains all Roman characters available in Unicode, along with their codes that can be used in HTML documents, CSS stylesheets, and other applications.

Roman Characters vs Alphabet Letters

It is important to distinguish between standard alphabet letters used to write Roman numerals (I, V, X, L, C, D, M) and dedicated Unicode characters for Roman numerals (Ⅰ, Ⅴ, Ⅹ, Ⅼ, Ⅽ, Ⅾ, Ⅿ).

Although they look similar, Unicode characters are specifically designed as single symbols representing specific numbers, not sequences of letters. This allows for better text formatting and ensures proper recognition of these characters as numbers by computer systems.

Most commonly used Roman characters

Ⅰ

U+2160

One

Ⅱ

U+2161

Two

Ⅲ

U+2162

Three

Ⅳ

U+2163

Four

Ⅴ

U+2164

Five

Ⅹ

U+2169

Ten

Ⅿ

U+216F

Thousand

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Complete Table of Roman Characters in Unicode

Character	Unicode Code	HTML Code	CSS Code	Unicode Name
Ⅰ	U+2160	&#8544;	\2160	Roman Numeral One
Ⅱ	U+2161	&#8545;	\2161	Roman Numeral Two
Ⅲ	U+2162	&#8546;	\2162	Roman Numeral Three
Ⅳ	U+2163	&#8547;	\2163	Roman Numeral Four
Ⅴ	U+2164	&#8548;	\2164	Roman Numeral Five
Ⅵ	U+2165	&#8549;	\2165	Roman Numeral Six
Ⅶ	U+2166	&#8550;	\2166	Roman Numeral Seven
Ⅷ	U+2167	&#8551;	\2167	Roman Numeral Eight
Ⅸ	U+2168	&#8552;	\2168	Roman Numeral Nine
Ⅹ	U+2169	&#8553;	\2169	Roman Numeral Ten
Ⅺ	U+216A	&#8554;	\216A	Roman Numeral Eleven
Ⅻ	U+216B	&#8555;	\216B	Roman Numeral Twelve
Ⅼ	U+216C	&#8556;	\216C	Roman Numeral Fifty
Ⅽ	U+216D	&#8557;	\216D	Roman Numeral One Hundred
Ⅾ	U+216E	&#8558;	\216E	Roman Numeral Five Hundred
Ⅿ	U+216F	&#8559;	\216F	Roman Numeral One Thousand
Lowercase Roman Characters
ⅰ	U+2170	&#8560;	\2170	Small Roman Numeral One
ⅱ	U+2171	&#8561;	\2171	Small Roman Numeral Two
ⅲ	U+2172	&#8562;	\2172	Small Roman Numeral Three
ⅳ	U+2173	&#8563;	\2173	Small Roman Numeral Four
ⅴ	U+2174	&#8564;	\2174	Small Roman Numeral Five
ⅵ	U+2175	&#8565;	\2175	Small Roman Numeral Six
ⅶ	U+2176	&#8566;	\2176	Small Roman Numeral Seven
ⅷ	U+2177	&#8567;	\2177	Small Roman Numeral Eight
ⅸ	U+2178	&#8568;	\2178	Small Roman Numeral Nine
ⅹ	U+2179	&#8569;	\2179	Small Roman Numeral Ten
ⅺ	U+217A	&#8570;	\217A	Small Roman Numeral Eleven
ⅻ	U+217B	&#8571;	\217B	Small Roman Numeral Twelve
ⅼ	U+217C	&#8572;	\217C	Small Roman Numeral Fifty
ⅽ	U+217D	&#8573;	\217D	Small Roman Numeral One Hundred
ⅾ	U+217E	&#8574;	\217E	Small Roman Numeral Five Hundred
ⅿ	U+217F	&#8575;	\217F	Small Roman Numeral One Thousand
Special Roman Characters
ↀ	U+2180	&#8576;	\2180	Roman Numeral One Thousand C D
ↁ	U+2181	&#8577;	\2181	Roman Numeral Five Thousand
ↂ	U+2182	&#8578;	\2182	Roman Numeral Ten Thousand
Ↄ	U+2183	&#8579;	\2183	Roman Numeral Reversed One Hundred
ↅ	U+2185	&#8581;	\2185	Roman Numeral Six Late Form
ↆ	U+2186	&#8582;	\2186	Roman Numeral Fifty Early Form
ↇ	U+2187	&#8583;	\2187	Roman Numeral Fifty Thousand
ↈ	U+2188	&#8584;	\2188	Roman Numeral One Hundred Thousand

Click the "Copy" button next to the selected character to copy it to your clipboard and use it in your text.

How to Use Roman Characters in Unicode

Applications in HTML documents

Roman characters in Unicode can be used directly in HTML in several ways:

<p>Chapter Ⅳ</p>

<p>Chapter Ⅳ</p>

Chapter Ⅳ

You can also use Roman characters in HTML attributes such as "title" or "alt":

Applications in CSS

In CSS stylesheets, Roman characters can be used with pseudo-elements or the content property:

.chapter-number::before {
  content: "\2163";  /* Character Ⅳ (IV) */
  font-weight: bold;
  margin-right: 5px;
}

In CSS you can also style Roman characters to match the overall design of the page:

.roman-numeral {
  font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;
  color: #8B0000;  /* Dark red */
  font-size: 1.2em;
}

Best Practices

Accessibility: When using Roman characters, make sure they are understandable to all users. Add an explanation or Arabic equivalent if needed.
Compatibility: Not all fonts support the full range of Roman characters in Unicode. Always test your text on different browsers and devices.
Consistency: If you use Roman characters in your project, apply them consistently throughout the entire website or document.
Fallback: Consider adding fallback styles in case Unicode characters are not displayed correctly.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do Unicode characters differ from regular letters?

Roman characters in Unicode are single symbols, while traditional notation uses sequences of letters from the Latin alphabet. For example, the number 4 can be written as a single Unicode character Ⅳ or as a sequence of letters "IV". Unicode characters are designed specifically as numerical symbols, which can be useful in certain typographic contexts.

Do all browsers support these characters?

Most modern browsers support Roman characters in Unicode. However, in some older browsers or on devices with limited font support, these characters may not display correctly. It's always good to test your site on different browsers and devices if you plan to use these characters extensively.

How do I insert a Roman character in Microsoft Word?

In Microsoft Word, you can insert Roman characters in several ways:

Use the Alt + code key combination (for example Alt+8547 for character Ⅳ)
Use the "Insert Symbol" function from the "Insert" menu
Use Unicode code: type the code (e.g., 2163 for Ⅳ), then press Alt+X

Are there Unicode characters for numbers larger than 1000?

Yes, Unicode contains characters for larger Roman numbers, such as ↁ (5000), ↂ (10000), ↇ (50000) and ↈ (100000). These characters are less commonly used, but can be useful in specialized historical or mathematical texts.

How to choose between small and large Roman characters?

The choice between small (ⅰ, ⅱ, ⅲ, ...) and large (Ⅰ, Ⅱ, Ⅲ, ...) Roman characters depends mainly on context and styling. Large characters are usually used as section numbers, chapters, or as main numerical elements. Small characters often appear in footnotes, indexes, or where a less visually dominant element is needed. In professional typography, the choice is often dictated by the stylistic conventions of the project.

Practical Application Examples

1 Chapter numbering

Chapter Ⅰ: Introduction

Chapter Ⅱ: Methodology

Chapter Ⅲ: Analysis

Chapter Ⅳ: Conclusions

Roman numbering adds elegance and a classic look to table of contents, especially in academic papers, books, and formal documents.

2 Clock design

Roman characters are often used on clock faces, giving them a classic, elegant appearance. Using Unicode characters instead of regular letters ensures better visual consistency.

3 Footnotes and references

As Johnson^ⅰ argues, this theory has its limitations...

^ⅰ Johnson, A. (2020). Modern Approach to Systems Theory. pp. 42-43.

Small Roman characters are often used in academic footnotes, especially in humanities research papers.

4 Historical designations

John Paul Ⅱ (1978-2005)

Louis ⅮⅣ (1643-1715)

Elizabeth Ⅱ (1952-2022)

Roman characters are traditionally used in designations of rulers, popes, and other historical figures. Using Unicode characters gives such designations a professional appearance.