diff --git a/pygmt/helpers/utils.py b/pygmt/helpers/utils.py
index 1732dfb4e3f..66be427d937 100644
--- a/pygmt/helpers/utils.py
+++ b/pygmt/helpers/utils.py
@@ -305,10 +305,11 @@ def non_ascii_to_octal(argstr):
             c: "\\" + format(i, "o")
             for c, i in zip(
                 "•…™—–fiž"  # \03x. \030 is undefined
+                "’‘"  # \047 and \140
                 "š"  # \177
                 "Œ†‡Ł⁄‹Š›œŸŽł‰„“”"  # \20x-\21x
                 "ı`´ˆ˜¯˘˙¨‚˚¸'˝˛ˇ",  # \22x-\23x
-                [*range(25, 32), *range(127, 160)],
+                [*range(25, 32), 39, 96, *range(127, 160)],
                 strict=True,
             )
         }
diff --git a/pygmt/tests/test_text.py b/pygmt/tests/test_text.py
index 9d52f2629af..ab07e964954 100644
--- a/pygmt/tests/test_text.py
+++ b/pygmt/tests/test_text.py
@@ -430,5 +430,5 @@ def test_text_quotation_marks():
     """
     fig = Figure()
     fig.basemap(projection="X4c/2c", region=[0, 4, 0, 2], frame=0)
-    fig.text(x=2, y=1, text="\\234 \\140 ' \" \\216 \\217", font="20p")
+    fig.text(x=2, y=1, text='\\234 ‘ ’ " “ ”', font="20p")  # noqa: RUF001
     return fig