Koppa (letter) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Greek alphabet
Αα	Alpha	Νν	Nu
Ββ	Beta	Ξξ	Xi
Γγ	Gamma	Οο	Omicron
Δδ	Delta	Ππ	Pi
Εε	Epsilon	Ρρ	Rho
Ζζ	Zeta	Σσ	Sigma
Ηη	Eta	Ττ	Tau
Θθ	Theta	Υυ	Upsilon
Ιι	Iota	Φφ	Phi
Κκ	Kappa	Χχ	Chi
Λλ	Lambda	Ψψ	Psi
Μμ	Mu	Ωω	Omega
Other letters
Ϝϝ	Digamma	Ϟϟ	Koppa
Ϛϛ	Stigma	Ϡϡ	Sampi
Ͱͱ	Heta	Ϸϸ	Sho
Ϻϻ	San

Koppa (also spelled qoppa) was an old letter in the Greek alphabet. It looked like Ϙ or ϙ. This letter came from an even older letter called Phoenician Qoph. Today, Koppa is mostly used as a number sign, looking like ϟ.

Koppa was once used to make a "k" sound, similar to the letter "Q" in English words like "queen." However, over time, another Greek letter called Kappa (Κ) became more common for this sound. Because of this, Koppa stopped being used as a regular letter in the Greek alphabet.

Koppa as a Number

Even though Koppa is not a letter anymore, it is still very important! It is used as a number in the system of Greek numerals. In this system, Koppa stands for the number 90. Its shape changed a little bit when it became a number symbol.

Koppa's Legacy

Koppa has had a big impact on other alphabets too. The Latin letter Q, which we use in English today, actually came from Koppa! It also influenced the Cyrillic alphabet, which is used in languages like Russian. In Cyrillic, there's a number sign called Koppa that looks similar and also stands for 90.

Images for kids

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  Corinthian stater coin. On the front, you can see Pegasus with a small Koppa symbol underneath, showing it's from Corinth. On the back is Athena wearing a Corinthian helmet.

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  Corinthian hemiobol coin. The front shows Pegasus with Koppa below, for Corinth. The back shows Aphrodite wearing a sakkos headband.