Nu Symbol
About Nu Symbol
ν is the Nu Symbol, the lowercase form of the 13th letter of the Greek alphabet (Ν / ν). The Nu Symbol ν is among the most common Greek letters in scientific and technical literature, frequently used for It denotes frequency, kinematic viscosity, and in particle physics represents the neutrino.
【Pronunciation】 In English, ν is most often pronounced NYOO or NOO (IPA: /njuː, nuː/). This is simply the anglicized name of the Greek letter.
The lowercase Nu Symbol ν is written as a distinct Greek glyph and is assigned codepoint U+03BD in the Greek and Coptic Unicode block. In plain or sans-serif fonts it can be mistaken for the Latin letter v, so verify the typeface or context.
【Historical Origin】 Nu derives from the Phoenician letter nun and has a long history in wave and fluid mechanics.
【Common Uses】 ν is highly active across disciplines: It denotes frequency, kinematic viscosity, and in particle physics represents the neutrino. It often appears alongside the uppercase Sigma Σ and lowercase Sigma σ in formulas, papers, and engineering drawings.
How to Type Nu Symbol
Windows Input
Method 1: Hold Alt and type 957 on the numeric keypad, then release Alt to get ν.
Mac Input
Method 2: Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for 'greek' or 'Nu Symbol', then select ν.
HTML/CSS Input
Method 3: HTML: ν or ν or ν; CSS: content: "\03BD";
LaTeX Input
Method 4: Use the \nu command in LaTeX math mode to produce ν.
Nu Symbol FAQ
How is ν pronounced?
The English pronunciation of ν is NYOO or NOO (IPA: /njuː, nuː/). It is the anglicized name of the Greek letter, used directly rather than described as 'lowercase ν'.
What is the difference between ν and the Latin letter v?
ν (U+03BD) is a Greek lowercase letter, whereas v is a Latin letter; their codepoints and glyphs differ. In a proper typeface ν and v are clearly distinct, but in plain text or sans-serif fonts they can be confused, so rely on context.
How do I type ν in Word, web pages, and LaTeX?
On Windows use Alt+957 on the numeric keypad; on Mac open the Character Viewer and search 'greek' or 'Nu Symbol'; on the web use the HTML entity ν; in LaTeX use \nu. For bulk use, copy ν directly from this page.