The Ultimate Guide to the ⇦ (Left White Arrow) Symbol
The ⇦ symbol, officially known as the Leftwards White Arrow, is a typographic character used to indicate direction, suggest a backward movement, or highlight a previous point. Unlike a standard solid arrow, this symbol features a distinct hollow, outlined design, making it a popular choice for user interfaces, technical diagrams, and digital text styling where a bolder, stylized directional marker is needed.
Introduced in 1991 with the very first release of the Unicode Standard, the ⇦ symbol sits at code point U+21E6. You can find it tucked away in the Arrows block, a section dedicated to standardizing the directional lines and pointers essential for everything from mathematics to early computer graphics. Its "white" designation doesn't refer to its actual color, but rather its unfilled, outlined shape, which adapts to whatever text color you are currently using.
In modern digital spaces, the Leftwards White Arrow is incredibly versatile. In user interface design and software documentation, it frequently represents a "back" button or a return action. Mathematicians and scientists occasionally use outlined arrows to denote specific logical implications or data mapping functions, differentiating them from standard solid arrows. On social media and messaging platforms, users drop the ⇦ symbol to point toward a previous message, draw attention to an avatar, or encourage readers to "swipe left" on a carousel post.
Typing the ⇦ symbol is straightforward across most devices. On Windows, hold down the Alt key and type 8678 on your numeric keypad. Mac users can quickly access it by pressing Command + Control + Space to open the Character Viewer and searching for "leftwards white arrow." Web developers can easily embed the symbol using the HTML entity ⇦ or the hex code ⇦. If you're on a mobile device, your best bet is usually to copy and paste it directly from a symbol library or web search.
The Unicode Arrows block is packed with variations, so you have plenty of alternatives if ⇦ isn't quite right. The standard Leftwards Arrow (←) provides a classic, thin, solid line, while the Leftwards Double Arrow (⇐) is thicker and heavily used in mathematical logic. If you need to point the opposite way, simply use its sibling, the Rightwards White Arrow (⇨). Each variation offers a slightly different visual weight, letting you choose the perfect pointer for your digital project.