How to Type Ring Above Accent (˚, å, Å, ů, Ů, ẘ, ẙ, Ångström) — Shortcuts, Alt Codes & Mac

Q: What is a ring above accent mark (˚)?

A ring above (˚) — known in Scandinavian languages as a bolle (e.g. bolle-å) and in Czech as a kroužek — is a small hollow circle diacritic placed over vowels (most notably Å/å and Ů/ů). In Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian, Å/å represents a distinct vowel (/ɔ/ or /oː/, as in Stockholm, København, and Ålesund). In Czech, ů represents a historical diphthong 'uo' that evolved into a long /uː/ in word-medial and final positions (dům, stůl, domů).

Q: What is the Alt code for A with ring above (å / Å) on Windows?

For lowercase å, the short 3-digit Alt code is Alt + 134 (or 4-digit Alt + 0229). For uppercase capital Å, the Alt code is Alt + 143 (or 4-digit Alt + 0197). For Czech ů (U with ring), use Alt + 0367 (and Alt + 0366 for Ů). For the standalone spacing ring above symbol (˚), use Alt + 0170 or Alt + 730.

Q: How do you type an A ring (å / Å) on a Mac keyboard?

On macOS, press Option + a to instantly type lowercase å. To type capital uppercase Å, press Option + Shift + a. You can also press and hold the 'a' key on your keyboard until the numbered diacritics menu appears, then press '1' or click å.

Q: How do you type a ring above in Microsoft Word?

In Microsoft Word on Windows, press Ctrl + Shift + @ (or Ctrl + Shift + 2), release all keys, and immediately type 'a' to get å (or Shift + A to get Å). Alternatively, type the hexadecimal code 00E5 and press Alt + X for å, 00C5 followed by Alt + X for Å, or 016F followed by Alt + X for Czech ů.

Q: What is the difference between the physics Ångström symbol (Å) and the letter A with ring above (Å)?

In physics and crystallography, the Ångström (Å) is a metric unit of length equal to 10^-10 meters (0.1 nanometers), named after Swedish physicist Anders Jonas Ångström. While visually identical in almost all modern fonts, Unicode assigns the dedicated symbol code point U+212B (Ångström Sign) for legacy compatibility, which standard Unicode Normalization Form C (NFC) maps canonically to U+00C5 (Latin Capital Letter A with Ring Above).

Q: What is the Czech kroužek (ů) and how does it differ from ú with acute accent?

In Czech, both ú (with acute) and ů (with ring / kroužek) represent the identical long /uː/ vowel sound. However, their usage is strictly positional based on historical etymology: ú is used exclusively at the beginning of root words (e.g. úterý 'Tuesday', úkol 'task'), whereas ů evolved from the medieval diphthong 'uo' (the tiny ring represents a miniature superscript 'o') and is used inside or at the end of words (e.g. dům 'house', stůl 'table', domů 'home').

Q: What are the HTML entity codes and Unicode values for ring above characters?

The standalone ring above symbol is &ring; (U+02DA) and combining ring above is ̊ (U+030A). For letters: å is å (U+00E5); Å is Å (U+00C5); ů is &uring; (U+016F); Ů is &Uring; (U+016E); and the Ångström unit is &angst; (U+212B).

QUICK REFERENCE

Master Ring Above Accent Keyboard Shortcut Matrix (All Letters)

The ring above (˚) is a circular diacritic placed atop vowels. In Scandinavian languages, Å / å is an independent letter representing open-mid / close-mid back vowels. In Czech, ů (kroužek) represents a long /uː/ vowel evolved from the historical diphthong uo. In science, Å is the international symbol for the Ångström unit ($10^{-10}\text{ m}$). Below is your complete cross-platform reference:

Character	Windows Alt Code	Mac Shortcut	Word Shortcut	Language / Phonetic Role	Unicode / HTML
Standalone (˚)	`Alt`+`0170` / `Alt`+`730`	`Opt`+`k`, `Space` (ABC Ext)	`02DA` + `Alt`+`X`	Standalone ring above diacritic mark	`U+02DA` \| `&ring;`
å (Lowercase A Ring)	`Alt`+`134` / `Alt`+`0229`	`Opt`+`a`	`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`@`, `a`	Swedish, Danish, Norwegian /ɔ/ or /oː/ (båt, gå, skåne)	`U+00E5` \| `å`
Å (Capital A Ring)	`Alt`+`143` / `Alt`+`0197`	`Opt`+`Shift`+`a`	`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`@`, `Shift`+`A`	Scandinavian capital letter (Ålesund, Åland, Århus)	`U+00C5` \| `Å`
Ångström (Å)	`Alt`+`143` / `Alt`+`0197`	`Opt`+`Shift`+`a`	`212B` + `Alt`+`X`	Physics unit of length ($10^{-10}\text{ m} = 0.1\text{ nm}$)	`U+212B` \| `&angst;`
ů (Lowercase U Ring)	`Alt`+`0367`	`Opt`+`k`, then `u` (ABC Ext)	`016F` + `Alt`+`X`	Czech kroužek long /uː/ (dům, stůl, domů, kůň)	`U+016F` \| `&uring;`
Ů (Capital U Ring)	`Alt`+`0366`	`Opt`+`k`, then `Shift`+`U`	`016E` + `Alt`+`X`	Czech capital U with ring (rare initial acronyms/all-caps)	`U+016E` \| `&Uring;`
ẘ / ẙ	`1E98` / `1E99` + `Alt`+`X`	`Opt`+`k`, then `w` / `y`	`1E98` / `1E99` + `Alt`+`X`	Welsh phonology & dialectology phonetic transcripts	`U+1E98` / `U+1E99`

WINDOWS OS

How to Type Ring Above Accents on Windows (4 Fast Methods)

Method 1: Windows Alt Codes (Numeric Keypad)

Using the separate 10-key numeric keypad on the right side of your keyboard (make sure Num Lock is active), hold down Alt and type the code:

å (Lowercase A Ring): Alt + 134 (or Alt + 0229)
Å (Capital A Ring / Ångström): Alt + 143 (or Alt + 0197)
ů (Lowercase Czech U Ring): Alt + 0367
Ů (Capital Czech U Ring): Alt + 0366
Standalone Ring Above (˚): Alt + 0170 or Alt + 730

Method 2: US-International Keyboard Dead Key (`Right Alt` + `w`)

On the US-International layout in Windows, the ring above is directly mapped to the AltGr (Right Alt) modifier:

Press Right Alt + w → instantly types å.
Press Right Alt + Shift + W → instantly types Å.

Method 3: Scandinavian Keyboard Layout

On native Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, or Finnish physical keyboard layouts, Å / å has its own dedicated key located immediately to the right of the P key. Pressing the key types å; holding Shift types Å.

Method 4: Windows Emoji & Symbol Panel (`Win` + `.`)

Press Win + . (Windows Key + Period) → click the Symbols (Ω) tab → choose Latin Symbols → click å, Å, or ů.

APPLE MACOS

How to Type Ring Above Accents on Mac (macOS)

Method 1: Direct Mac Shortcut (`Option` + `a`)

macOS includes instant, dedicated keyboard shortcuts for the Scandinavian A with ring across all standard English keyboard layouts:

Lowercase å: Press Option + a
Uppercase Å (Ångström): Press Option + Shift + a

Method 2: ABC — Extended Layout for Czech ů (`Option` + `k`)

On the ABC — Extended layout in macOS, Option + k functions as the dedicated ring-above dead key:

Press Option + k, release both keys, then type u → gives ů.
Press Option + k, release, then type Shift + U → gives Ů.
Press Option + k, release, then press Space → gives standalone ˚.

Method 3: The Press-and-Hold Diacritics Menu

1

Press and hold down the target letter key (a or u) on your Mac keyboard.

2

A horizontal numbered diacritics strip will appear above the cursor showing available accented variants.

3

Press the number corresponding to the ring accent (e.g. 1 or 2 for å) or click the glyph.

MICROSOFT WORD

How to Type Ring Above Accents in Microsoft Word & Office Suite

Method 1: Control-Shift-At Shortcut Formula (`Ctrl` + `Shift` + `@`)

Microsoft Word has a built-in mnemonic shortcut for ring above characters using the circular @ symbol:

Press Ctrl + Shift + @ (or Ctrl + Shift + 2), release all keys, then type a → gives å.
Press Ctrl + Shift + @, release, then type Shift + A → gives Å.

Method 2: Word Unicode Hex Converter (`Alt` + `X`)

Type the 4-digit hexadecimal code directly into your Word document and immediately press Alt + X:

00E5 + Alt + X → å | 00C5 + Alt + X → Å
212B + Alt + X → Å (Dedicated Ångström Unit)
016F + Alt + X → ů | 016E + Alt + X → Ů
02DA + Alt + X → ˚ (Standalone Spacing Ring)

LINGUISTICS & SCIENCE

Linguistic, Scientific & Phonetic Significance of the Ring Above (˚)

Scandinavian Languages: The Letter Å (Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish)

In Scandinavian alphabets, Å / å is not considered an 'A with an accent' — it is an entirely independent, distinct letter of the alphabet, indexed at the very end of the alphabet (Swedish: ..., X, Y, Z, Å, Ä, Ö; Danish and Norwegian: ..., X, Y, Z, Æ, Ø, Å).

Phonetically, å represents an open-mid back rounded vowel /ɔ/ (short) or a close-mid back rounded vowel /oː/ (long), sounding similar to the "aw" in English raw or "o" in more:

Swedish: Stockholm, Skåne, Småland, fågel ("bird"), båt ("boat"), gå ("to walk").
Danish & Norwegian: København, Ålesund, Århus (spelled Aarhus in local municipal usage), måne ("moon"), hår ("hair").
Historical Shift: In Old Norse, the sound was represented by a long aa. In 1526, Swedish printers created the letter å by placing a miniature superscript 'o' atop 'a'. Norway officially adopted å in 1917, and Denmark followed in the orthographic reform of 1948.

Czech: The Kroužek on U (ů / Ů)

In Czech orthography, the letter ů features a ring diacritic called a kroužek ("little ring"). It represents a long /uː/ sound identical in pronunciation to ú with an acute accent. However, their usage reflects historical etymology:

In medieval Old Czech (14th century), the sound was a diphthong uo. Over time, scribes wrote the 'o' above the 'u' as a superscript ligature (ů) before the pronunciation monophthongized into long /uː/.
Positional Orthography Rule: ú (acute) is used strictly at the beginning of words and root prefixes (e.g. úterý "Tuesday", úkol "task", úroveň "level").
ů (kroužek) is used exclusively in the middle or end of words (e.g. dům "house", stůl "table", kůň "horse", bůh "god", domů "home").

Physics, Chemistry & Crystallography: The Ångström Unit (Å)

In atomic physics, crystallography, spectroscopy, and molecular chemistry, the Ångström (symbol Å) is an international unit of length defined as:

1 Å = 10^-10 m = 0.1 nm = 100 pm

Named after the renowned Swedish physicist Anders Jonas Ångström (1814–1874) — one of the founders of optical spectroscopy — the unit is ideally suited for measuring atomic radii (typically 0.3 to 3 Å), chemical bond lengths (e.g. C–C single bond $\approx 1.54\text{ \AA}$), and optical light wavelengths ($4000\text{ \AA}$ to $7000\text{ \AA}$).

DEVELOPER CHEAT SHEET

Developer & Technical Reference (Unicode, HTML, CSS & JavaScript)

Character	Unicode Code Point	HTML Named Entity	HTML Decimal / Hex	CSS Escape	JavaScript / JSON
`˚` (Standalone Ring Above)	`U+02DA`	`&ring;`	`˚` / `˚`	`\\02DA`	`"\\u02DA"`
`◌̊` (Combining Ring Above)	`U+030A`	None	`̊` / `̊`	`\\030A`	`"\\u030A"`
`å` (Lowercase A Ring)	`U+00E5`	`å`	`å` / `å`	`\\00E5`	`"\\u00E5"`
`Å` (Capital A Ring)	`U+00C5`	`Å`	`Å` / `Å`	`\\00C5`	`"\\u00C5"`
`Å` (Ångström Unit)	`U+212B`	`&angst;`	`Å` / `Å`	`\\212B`	`"\\u212B"`
`ů` (Lowercase U Ring)	`U+016F`	`&uring;`	`ů` / `ů`	`\\016F`	`"\\u016F"`
`Ů` (Capital U Ring)	`U+016E`	`&Uring;`	`Ů` / `Ů`	`\\016E`	`"\\u016E"`
`ẘ` (W with Ring Above)	`U+1E98`	None	`ẘ` / `ẘ`	`\\1E98`	`"\\u1E98"`
`ẙ` (Y with Ring Above)	`U+1E99`	None	`ẙ` / `ẙ`	`\\1E99`	`"\\u1E99"`

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Frequently Asked Questions About the Ring Above Accent

A ring above (˚) — known in Scandinavian languages as a bolle (e.g. bolle-å) and in Czech as a kroužek — is a small hollow circle diacritic placed over vowels (most notably Å/å and Ů/ů). In Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian, Å/å represents a distinct vowel (/ɔ/ or /oː/, as in Stockholm, København, and Ålesund). In Czech, ů represents a historical diphthong uo that evolved into a long /uː/ in word-medial and final positions (dům, stůl, domů).

For lowercase å, the short 3-digit Alt code is Alt + 134 (or 4-digit Alt + 0229). For uppercase capital Å, the Alt code is Alt + 143 (or 4-digit Alt + 0197). For Czech ů (U with ring), use Alt + 0367 (and Alt + 0366 for Ů). For the standalone spacing ring above symbol (˚), use Alt + 0170 or Alt + 730.

On macOS, press Option + a to instantly type lowercase å. To type capital uppercase Å, press Option + Shift + a. You can also press and hold the a key on your keyboard until the numbered diacritics menu appears, then press 1 or click å.

In Microsoft Word on Windows, press Ctrl + Shift + @ (or Ctrl + Shift + 2), release all keys, and immediately type a to get å (or Shift + A to get Å). Alternatively, type the hexadecimal code 00E5 and press Alt + X for å, 00C5 followed by Alt + X for Å, or 016F followed by Alt + X for Czech ů.

In physics and crystallography, the Ångström (Å) is a metric unit of length equal to $10^{-10}$ meters ($0.1\text{ nm}$), named after Swedish physicist Anders Jonas Ångström. While visually identical in almost all modern fonts, Unicode assigns the dedicated symbol code point U+212B (Ångström Sign) for legacy compatibility, which standard Unicode Normalization Form C (NFC) maps canonically to U+00C5 (Latin Capital Letter A with Ring Above).

In Czech, both ú (with acute) and ů (with ring / kroužek) represent the identical long /uː/ vowel sound. However, their usage is strictly positional based on historical etymology: ú is used exclusively at the beginning of root words (e.g. úterý "Tuesday", úkol "task"), whereas ů evolved from the medieval diphthong uo (the tiny ring represents a miniature superscript 'o') and is used inside or at the end of words (e.g. dům "house", stůl "table", domů "home").

The standalone ring above symbol is &ring; (U+02DA) and combining ring above is ̊ (U+030A). For letters: å is å (U+00E5); Å is Å (U+00C5); ů is &uring; (U+016F); Ů is &Uring; (U+016E); and the Ångström unit is &angst; (U+212B).

On iOS and Android virtual touchscreen keyboards, press and hold down the letter a or u. A popup diacritics bubble will appear showing available accented variants. Without lifting your finger, slide across to the ring character (å or ů) and release.

COMPLETE A TO Z ACCENTED LETTERS DIRECTORY

Explore All Individual A–Z Accented Letter Guides

Need shortcuts for specific letters or other accent types (acute, grave, circumflex, umlauts, tildes, macrons, carons, cedillas)? Browse our full suite of 26 dedicated guides:

å á à â ä ã ā