Obsidian math delimiters, pairing, and trigger history

Purpose

This page isolates the Obsidian evidence for math delimiter syntax, pair settings, and math-trigger behavior.

Source set

• Advanced formatting syntax.md
• Settings.md
• Views and editing mode.md
• v0.7.2.md
• v0.8.11.md
• v0.8.14.md
• v0.11.11.md
• v0.13.0.md
• v0.13.3.md
• broad grep over ../raw/obsidian/help/en
• broad grep over ../raw/obsidian/developer/en

Official source entrypoints checked

• https://help.obsidian.md/syntax
• https://help.obsidian.md/edit-and-read
• https://obsidian.md/changelog/

Direct raw files read

• ../raw/obsidian/help/en/Editing and formatting/Advanced formatting syntax.md
• ../raw/obsidian/help/en/Editing and formatting/Views and editing mode.md
• ../raw/obsidian/help/en/User interface/Settings.md
• ../raw/obsidian/help/Release notes/v0.7.2.md
• ../raw/obsidian/help/Release notes/v0.8.11.md
• ../raw/obsidian/help/Release notes/v0.8.14.md
• ../raw/obsidian/help/Release notes/v0.13.0.md
• ../raw/obsidian/help/Release notes/v0.13.3.md

Strongest explicit signals

• Obsidian explicitly documents:
  • block math with $$
  • inline math with $...$
• Obsidian explicitly exposes:
  • Auto-pair brackets
  • Auto-pair Markdown syntax
• Obsidian explicitly documents the editing-mode context:
  • Live Preview hides most markdown syntax away from the cursor
  • Source mode shows the raw markdown syntax
• Obsidian explicitly records $ inside the markdown auto-pair family:
  • v0.8.14: $ auto-pairs when selecting text and pressing $
  • v0.11.11: $ stops auto-pairing on empty typing and stays selection-wrap only because blind typing was annoying
  • v0.13.3: Live Preview implements auto-pairing for markdown formatting symbols including $
• Obsidian explicitly records block-math trigger behavior:
  • v0.7.2: block LaTeX is detected in the editor when $$ is on its own line
  • v0.13.0: block $$ LaTeX shows a preview in Live Preview
• Live Preview is a real editing mode that hides most markdown syntax away from the cursor

Plate-relevant takeaways

• Obsidian is explicit about math delimiter syntax
• Obsidian is explicit that markdown-sensitive pair behavior exists as an editor setting
• Obsidian is explicit for a conservative $ policy:
  • selection-wrap is real
  • math-sensitive pairing belongs to the markdown auto-pair family
  • free empty-input pairing is not the only sane behavior for $
• Obsidian is explicit for block $$ detection and preview, even if it does not document the same $$ + Enter promotion shape Typora uses
• the current developer corpus still does not add stronger plugin-level trigger mechanics beyond generic editor APIs and markdown post-processing docs

What this source cluster is good for

Use this cluster when deciding:

• whether math delimiter triggers belong in a profile-adjacent input-assist lane
• whether $ selection-wrap and $ pair-on-type should be split into separate rows
• whether Obsidian adds product pressure for conservative markdown-sensitive pairing
• whether live-preview mode changes how delimiter syntax should be shown after entry

What this source cluster is not good for

This cluster is weaker for:

• proving the exact current empty-selection $ pair-on-type behavior in every editing mode
• proving whether $$ should promote on Enter instead of just being detected as block math when the line shape is complete
• proving whether the trigger should create nodes immediately vs just pair or detect symbols
• replacing stronger explicit Typora or Milkdown trigger evidence