Calligraphy styles across civilizations

The different periods that calligraphy has known have enriched it. The varied writing styles of different eras and different civilizations have each brought sublime touches, making calligraphy a genre of work in its own right. We can divide calligraphy into 5 categories including Latin calligraphy, Persian calligraphy, Arabic calligraphy, Chinese calligraphy and illuminations. The rest of the article will detail these categories.

For what reason is calligraphy significant?

Calligraphy permits you to see each word and expression, the manner in which a work of art permits you to put words to the story portrayed – this fine art accentuates the magnificence and history of the composed word. Think about your unsurpassed most loved statement and envision it composed on a piece of paper before you.

Turn into an expert calligrapher?

There are no conventional capabilities that a calligraphy courses in Lahore should have prior to tracking down work, yet there is a scope of instructional classes that will absolutely help you along your way, with one of the most famous coming from the Society of Scribes and Illuminators.

Latin calligraphy

1- Roman writing

The Romans made sure to adapt the writing of the Greeks to Latin phonetics. This happened at the end of the 7th century BC. Later, this Roman script inspired other Latin scripts. There are many styles of Roman writing, if we only mention the Cursive, the Roman Capital, the Quadrata and the Rustica.

2- The Uncial

It is a medieval calligraphic script in rounded capitals. This type of writing is the one that has mainly influenced the shapes of our current lowercase characters. It was in the 3rd century that people began to use the Uncial. It was first used to write all Christian texts and then it became the style of writing used by all. The uncial evolved in different phases: the Roman uncial, between the 4th and 5th centuries; the classic uncial in the 6th century and the late uncial, between the 7th and 9th centuries.

3- Carolina

The Carolingian or Carolina script was born out of a need to write in a faster, more convenient, yet readable way. This style of writing thus emerged under the reign of Charlemagne, during a period of reform, when the Frankish Empire wanted to make the cultural heritage of Antiquity accessible. In 789, Charlemagne promulgates Carolina to the rank of official writing in the kingdom, and quickly this style became the writing of all Europe. It will remain so for several centuries. This is also when the question mark was created.

The Gothic scriptures

The Gothic style stems from the gradual transformation of Carolina. Between the two types of writing, there had been, first, the primitive Gothic to arrive at more assertive styles. Thus, the rounded shapes will gradually tighten until they become straight and angular. White spaces between characters have also been reduced. This is why this style is also called: “Black Letter”.

There are several Gothic scripts. In southern Europe, it takes on a rounder shape, while in the north, the characters have a more vertical shape and the breaks are more accentuated. Gothic scripts were used, notably, in the 9th century

The Texture

Appearing at the end of the 12th century, after the primitive Gothic, it is the most used form of Gothic writing. The textura remained until the 16th century, although it had a great drawback: it took up too much space, therefore, it was not suitable for small writing spaces.

It has, nevertheless, brought its little revolution in writing, because it was during its use that the line appeared on the i, which would later become the point. A new capital style also appears: the first vertical line is doubled, the first of the two lines has a vertical repeat in the middle. Note that the name “Textura” means: “regular aspect weft”.

The Rotunda or Spanish Gothic

This form of Gothic writing developed with other styles, such as Cursive Gothic, Bâtarde Gothic or Fraktur Gothic. The Rotunda was particularly used in southern Europe. It therefore belongs to the category of Gothic, and yet, it seems, this writing was developed by Italian scribes who rejected this style. In any case, it is much clearer and thus, easier to read.

It is characterized, in particular, by the shape of the “d” which does not resemble what we have already seen in the types of calligraphy known until now.

Calligraphy styles across civilizations

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