Keyed in: UAE dirham symbol makes debut in Unicode 18.0
UAE's dirham symbol has officially been included in Unicode 's version 18.0, making it easier for computer and smartphone makers to include it on keyboards. Unicode, based in California , is the technology industry’s leading organisation for standardising emojis and digital characters across billions of digital devices. Last week, the organisation described the UAE dirham symbol as "among the…
The UAE dirham symbol has been officially incorporated into Unicode 18.0, facilitating its inclusion on computer keyboards worldwide. The UAE Central Bank unveiled the symbol on March 27, 2025, depicting horizontal lines symbolizing financial stability and inspired by the UAE flag. The Unicode, headquartered in California, described the symbol as one of the most anticipated additions to version 18.0, alongside the Omani riyal and Maldivian rufiyaa.
Although tech companies need to adopt the latest Unicode update, the fact that the dirham made it past Unicode's beta version means users will soon find it easier to select the symbol on their devices. Each symbol was authorized for public use by the relevant monetary authority over a year ago, but lacked standardised encoding before Unicode 18.0.
The Unicode Consortium, established in 1991, revealed that version 18.0 adds 13,007 new characters, including new emojis, bringing the total number of encoded characters to 172,808.
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