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Beta (upper case Β, lower case β) is the 2nd letter of the Greek alphabet. In the Ancient Greek language, it was pronounced [b], but in Modern Greek is pronounced [v]. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 2. Beta should not be confused with a similar-looking but unrelated letter in German language orthography, ß, which denotes a long "s" sound.

The lower-case letter β is used as the symbol for:

• The beta particle and beta decay in particle physics.
• The speed of an object relative to the speed of light (β = v/c) in special relativity theory.
• The voiced bilabial fricative ( IPA) in phonology.

The Modern Greek name of the letter is /ˈvi.ta/. The American pronunciation is /ˈbeɪ.tə/ whereas the British pronunciation is /ˈbiː.tə/. See: American and British English differences, IPA

Letters that arose from Beta include the Roman BThe letter B is the second letter of the modern Latin alphabet. History The letter B probably started as a pictogram of the floorplan of a house in Egyptian hieroglyphs or the Proto-semitic alphabet. By 1500 BC, the Phoenicians had given the letter a line and the Cyrillic letters BeBe (, ) is the second letter in the Cyrillic alphabet. It is pronounced like English B (a voiced bilabial plosive). In the Russian language, at the end of a word or before a voiceless consonant, it is pronounced [p]. It looks approximately like a 6, and s and VeVe (, ) is the third letter of the Cyrillic alphabet. In the Russian language it is usually pronounced [v], except at the end of a word, where is is pronounced [f]. It looks like the B of the Latin alphabet. Ve's old name is Vedi . It is derived from Gree.

The Chinese radical Fu (阝) looks almost identical.