Although people in many parts of the world share common
alphabet
An alphabet is a standardized set of basic written graphemes (called letters) that represent the phonemes of certain spoken languages. Not all writing systems represent language in this way; in a syllabary, each character represents a syll ...
s and
numeral systems (versions of the
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
writing system
A writing system is a method of visually representing verbal communication, based on a script and a set of rules regulating its use. While both writing and speech are useful in conveying messages, writing differs in also being a reliable form ...
are used throughout the
Americas
The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World.
Along with th ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, and much of
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
; the
Arabic numerals
Arabic numerals are the ten numerical digits: , , , , , , , , and . They are the most commonly used symbols to write Decimal, decimal numbers. They are also used for writing numbers in other systems such as octal, and for writing identifiers ...
are nearly universal), styles of handwritten
letterforms
A letterform, letter-form or letter form, is a term used especially in typography, palaeography, calligraphy and epigraphy to mean a letter's shape. A letterform is a type of glyph, which is a specific, concrete way of writing an abstract charac ...
vary between individuals, and sometimes also vary systematically between regions.
Arabic numerals
The handwritten numerals used in Western countries have two common forms:
* "In-line" or "full-height" form is similar to that used on typewriters and is taught in North America; in this form all numerals have the same height as the majuscule alphabet (''i.e.'' the capital letters).
* In "old style"
text figures
Text figures (also known as non-lining, lowercase, old style, ranging, hanging, medieval, billing, or antique figures or numerals) are numerals designed with varying heights in a fashion that resembles a typical line of running text, hence the ...
, numerals ''0'', ''1'' and ''2'' are
x-height
upright 2.0, alt=A diagram showing the line terms used in typography
In typography, the x-height, or corpus size, is the distance between the baseline and the mean line of lowercase letters in a typeface. Typically, this is the height of the let ...
; numerals ''6'' and ''8'' have bowls within x-height, plus ascenders; numerals ''3'', ''5'', ''7'' and ''9'' have descenders from
x-height
upright 2.0, alt=A diagram showing the line terms used in typography
In typography, the x-height, or corpus size, is the distance between the baseline and the mean line of lowercase letters in a typeface. Typically, this is the height of the let ...
, with ''3'' resembling ; and the numeral ''4'' extends a short distance both up and down from
x-height
upright 2.0, alt=A diagram showing the line terms used in typography
In typography, the x-height, or corpus size, is the distance between the baseline and the mean line of lowercase letters in a typeface. Typically, this is the height of the let ...
. Old-style numerals are often used by British
presses.
Aside from these two main forms, other regional variations abound.
The numeral 0: Some writers put a diagonal slash through the numeral 0 (zero), a practice that was used on some early, low-resolution computer terminals which displayed a slashed "zero" glyph to distinguish it from the capital letter ''O''. This practice conflicts with the use of the letter "Ø" in the
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
and
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
languages, and the
empty set
In mathematics, the empty set is the unique set having no elements; its size or cardinality (count of elements in a set) is zero. Some axiomatic set theories ensure that the empty set exists by including an axiom of empty set, while in other ...
character "∅" used in
set theory
Set theory is the branch of mathematical logic that studies sets, which can be informally described as collections of objects. Although objects of any kind can be collected into a set, set theory, as a branch of mathematics, is mostly conce ...
. Forms that avoid confusion with Danish include:
* a dot placed in the centre of zero, but needing to be distinguished from
monocular O
Monocular O ( majuscule: , minuscule: ) is one of the rare glyph variants of Cyrillic letter . This glyph variant was used in certain manuscripts in the root word ( eye), and also in some other functions, for example, in the word- and syllable- ...
(Ꙩ/ꙩ), the
bilabial click
The bilabial clicks are a family of click consonants that sound like a smack of the lips. They are found as phonemes only in the small Tuu language family (currently two languages, one moribund), in the ǂ’Amkoe language of Botswana (also mo ...
letter (ʘ), or the Gothic letter
hwair
Hwair (also , , ) is the name of , the Gothic letter expressing the or sound (reflected in English by the inverted '' wh''-spelling for ). Hwair is also the name of the Latin ligature (capital ) used to transcribe Gothic.
Name
The name of the ...
(𐍈)
* the use of a tick, that is, a slash that does not cross the entire bowl of the figure, but lies completely in the upper right
* a form found in Germany with a vertical slash
* a form with a slash from upper left to lower right.
Confusion between the numeral 0 and the letter O can be resolved by using a script letter O (with a loop at the top).
![Handwriting variations, numeral 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Handwriting_variations%2C_numeral_1.svg)
The numeral 1: This numeral is sometimes written with a serif at the top extending downward and to the left. People in some parts of Europe extend this stroke nearly the whole distance to the baseline. It is sometimes written with horizontal serifs at the base; without them it can resemble the shape of the numeral ''7'', which has a near-vertical stroke without a crossbar, and a shorter horizontal top stroke. This numeral is often written as a plain vertical line without an ear at the top; this form is easily confused with a capital I, a lower-case L, and a vertical bar , .
The numeral 2: In the U.S., Germany and Austria, a curly version used to be taught and is still used by many in handwriting. This two can be confused with a capital script Q, or the letter Z. It appears as ੨.
The numeral 3: This numeral is sometimes written with a flat top, similar to the character Ʒ (ezh). This form is sometimes used to prevent people from fraudulently changing a three into an eight (but introduces the potential for confusion with ezh or with cursive Z). It is often written with a combination of two reversed or turned small letter "c"-like curves, similar to the Cyrillic character З (
ze) or a reversed or turned Latin letter
epsilon
Epsilon (, ; uppercase , lowercase or lunate ; el, έψιλον) is the fifth letter of the Greek alphabet, corresponding phonetically to a mid front unrounded vowel or . In the system of Greek numerals it also has the value five. It was der ...
(
ɛ), without the flat top.
![Handwriting variations, numeral 4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Handwriting_variations%2C_numeral_4.svg)
The numeral 4: Some people leave the top "open": all the lines are either vertical or horizontal, as in a
seven-segment display
A seven-segment display is a form of electronic display device for displaying decimal numerals that is an alternative to the more complex dot matrix displays.
Seven-segment displays are widely used in digital clocks, electronic meters, basic ...
. This makes it easier to distinguish from the numeral ''9''. Whether the horizontal bar terminates at or crosses the right vertical bar is insignificant in the West, but to be distinguished from certain Chinese characters (particularly
丩), it must cross.
The numeral 5: In Taiwan, the left vertical bar is extended upwards as a long stem. If this is slanted, the overall figure may more closely resemble an uppercase ''Y''. If casually written it can be confused with the letter S.
The numeral 6: Can be confused with a letter capital ''G'', or the lowercase ''b'', or the nine if inverted. In situations where the number 6 may appear at various angles (such as on billiard balls, some styles of playing cards and dice), it can be underlined (appearing as
''6'') or followed by a full stop (appearing as ''6.'') to indicate the proper viewing angle to disambiguate between ''6'' and ''9''; a ''9'' may or may not appear with similar underlining or full stop (as
''9'' or ''9.''). It can also be written with a straight line rather than a curly line on top, appearing as ''b''.
The numeral 7: The traditional form found in
copperplate penmanship begins with a serif at the upper left and has a wavy horizontal stroke (like a
swash
Swash, or forewash in geography, is a turbulent layer of water that washes up on the beach after an incoming wave has broken. The swash action can move beach materials up and down the beach, which results in the cross-shore sediment exchange. T ...
). In East Asian countries (Korea, China and Japan), this numeral is commonly written with such a serif, but no swash and no crossbar through the middle. It is usually written with just two strokes, the top horizontal and the (usually angled) vertical. A short horizontal bar is sometimes used to cross the vertical in the middle, to distinguish the seven from a numeral one, especially in cultures (such as French) that write ''1'' with a very long upstroke. This form is used commonly throughout continental Europe, parts of the United States and frequently in Australia. In Taiwan two horizontal bars are sometimes used, although an extra-long serif is the feature which most clearly distinguishes ''7'' from ''1''. When the cross is added in the center it can cause confusion with a script capital ''F''.
The numeral 8: Some people write this numeral like two circles. Other people write this numeral in one continuous motion, which makes it look like two tear drops or a sideways
lemniscate
In algebraic geometry, a lemniscate is any of several figure-eight or -shaped curves. The word comes from the Latin "''lēmniscātus''" meaning "decorated with ribbons", from the Greek λημνίσκος meaning "ribbons",. or which alternative ...
.
The numeral 9: In parts of Europe, this numeral is written with the vertical ending in a hook at the bottom. This version resembles how the lowercase
g
is commonly written (). Elsewhere the usual shape is to draw the vertical straight to the baseline. A nine may or may not appear with underlining or full stop (as
''9'' or ''9.'') in order to avoid confusion with ''6''. In China, southern Taiwan, and South Korea, the nine is sometimes written with the loop to the left of the stick, resembling a lowercase "q" with the loop on the cap line.
The Latin writing system
The lowercase letter a: This letter is often handwritten as the single-storey "ɑ" (a circle and a vertical line adjacent to the right of the circle) instead of the double-storey "a" found in many fonts. (See:
A#Typographic variants)
The lowercase letter g: In Polish, this letter is often rendered with a straight descender without a hook or loop. This effectively means that a handwritten g looks much like a q in other writing traditions. The letter q, which is only used in foreign words and is extremely rare, is then disambiguated from g by adding a serif (often undulated) extending to the right from the bottom tip of the descender.
The lowercase letter p: The French way of writing this character has a half-way ascender as the vertical extension of the descender, which also does not complete the bowl at the bottom. In early Finnish writing, the curve to the bottom was omitted, thus the resulting letter resembled an ''n'' with a descender (like ꞃ).
The lowercase letter q: In block letters, some Europeans like to cross the descender to prevent confusion with the numeral ''9'', which also can be written with a straight stem. In North America the descender often ends with a hook curving up to the right (). In Polish, the lowercase q is disambiguated from ''g'' by a serif extending from the bottom tip of the descender to the right.
The lowercase letter s: See
long s
The long s , also known as the medial s or initial s, is an archaism, archaic form of the lowercase letter . It replaced the single ''s'', or one or both of the letters ''s'' in a 'double ''s sequence (e.g., "ſinfulneſs" for "sinfulness" ...
.
The lowercase letter t: In block letters, t is often written with straight mark without the hook bottom. In modern cursive, the descender often ends with a hook to the right.
The lowercase letters u and v: These letters have a common origin and were once written according to the location in the word rather than the sound. The v came first; the u originally had a loop extending to the left and was only used to start words. All other locations for either u or v were written with the latter. In Germany (especially southern Germany), Austria and Switzerland, lowercase u is often written with a horizontal stroke or swish over it (''ŭ'', ''ū'', ''ũ''), to distinguish it from n. (cf.
German orthography#handwritten umlauts)
The uppercase letter I: This letter is often written with one stroke on the top of the letter and one on the bottom. This distinguishes it from the lowercase letter l, and the numeral 1, which is often written as a straight line without the ear.
The uppercase letter J: In Germany, this letter is often written with a long stroke to the left at the top. This is to distinguish it from the capital letter "I".
The uppercase letter S: In Japan, this letter is often written with a single
serif
In typography, a serif () is a small line or stroke regularly attached to the end of a larger stroke in a letter or symbol within a particular font or family of fonts. A typeface or "font family" making use of serifs is called a serif typeface ...
added to the end of the stroke.
The uppercase letter Z: This letter is usually written with three strokes. In parts of Europe such as Italy, Germany and Spain, it is commonly written with a short horizontal crossbar added through the middle. This version is sometimes preferred in mathematics to help distinguish it from the numeral ''2''. In
Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
, the character
Ƶ is used as an
allographic variant of the letter
Ż. In Japan it is often written with a short diagonal crossbar through the middle (). In France, it is often written with a loop at the bottom.
The lowercase letter z: In the cursive style used in the United States and most Australian states (excluding South Australia), this letter is written as an
ezh
Ezh (Ʒ ʒ) , also called the "tailed z", is a letter whose lower case form is used in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), representing the voiced postalveolar fricative consonant. For example, the pronunciation of "si" in ''vi ...
(ʒ).
and script
German and its modernized 20th-century school version , the form of handwriting taught in schools and generally used in Germany and Austria until it was banned by the Nazis in 1941, was very different from that used in other European countries. However, it was generally only used for German words. Any foreign words included in the text would usually be written in the "normal" script, which was called the (Latin script) in German.
Slant
Slant is the predominant angle of the
downward stroke in handwriting based on
Latin script
The Latin script, also known as Roman script, is an alphabetic writing system based on the letters of the classical Latin alphabet, derived from a form of the Greek alphabet which was in use in the ancient Greek city of Cumae, in southern Italy ...
. The slant of a sample of writing is a feature of many regional handwriting variations, and also a reflection of the
copybook that is taught.
Examples
File:Looped cursive alphabet.jpg, alt=Handwritten Cursive alphabet with all capitals first then all lowercase letters, English-language handwriting as taught in Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
during twentieth century.
File:D'Nealian Cursive.svg, alt=Handwritten cursive alphabet, with all lowercase letters followed by uppercase letters and numerals, English-language, D’Nealian method cursive.
File:Dőlt írásos ábécé.jpg, alt=Handwritten cursive alphabet with all lowercase letters followed by capitals and punctuation, with consonants in green and vowels in red, Cursive in Hungarian, with vowels in red.
File:Handwriting italian.jpg, alt=Cursive letters and numbers as usually taught in Italy., Upper- and lower-case handwritten cursive letters and numbers as usually taught in Italy
File:Cursive Tifinagh.svg, alt=Handwritten cursive alphabet written in black on cyan lines, Cursive Tifinagh
Tifinagh ( Tuareg Berber language: or , ) is a script used to write the Berber languages. Tifinagh is descended from the ancient Libyco-Berber alphabet. The traditional Tifinagh, sometimes called Tuareg Tifinagh, is still favored by the Tuare ...
.
File:Serbian Cyrillic cursive2.png, alt=Cursive handwriting with paired capital and vowel, Serbian Cyrillic
The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, th ...
cursive.
See also
*
Arabic numeral variations
*
Slashed zero
The slashed zero is a representation of the Arabic digit " 0" (zero) with a slash through it. The slashed zero glyph is often used to distinguish the digit "zero" ("0") from the Latin script letter " O" anywhere that the distinction needs emphas ...
*
Symbols for zero
The modern numerical digit 0 is usually written as a circle, an ellipse, or a rounded rectangle.
Glyphs
In most modern typefaces, the height of the 0 character is the same as the other digits. However, in typefaces with text figures, the charac ...
*
Null (disambiguation)
Null may refer to:
Science, technology, and mathematics Computing
*Null (SQL)
In SQL, null or NULL is a special marker used to indicate that a data value does not exist in the database. Introduced by the creator of the relational database mo ...
*
Zero (disambiguation)
Zero is both the digit 0 and the number 0.
Zero or Zeros may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Comics
* Zero (Marvel Comics), several characters in the Marvel Comics Universe
* ''Zero'' (manhwa), a Korean manhwa by Dall-Young Lim a ...
*
Ø (disambiguation)
''Ø (Disambiguation)'' is the seventh studio album by American metalcore band Underoath. Released on November 9, 2010, through Tooth & Nail Records, the album was the band's only without founding member Aaron Gillespie, and is the first an ...
*
0 (disambiguation)
0 is the integer between −1 and +1, and the numerical digit used to represent that number.
0 may also refer to:
* 0 (year), a year used in some calendar systems
* Slashed zero, a glyph used to distinguish the numeral 0 from the letter O
* 0 or ...
*
ʘ
*
List of Latin-script letters
*
Q with hook tail Q with hook tail (majuscule: Ɋ, minuscule: ɋ) is a letter of the extended Latin alphabet. It was introduced by Lutheran missionaries in Papua New Guinea for use in the Numanggang language in the 1930s or 1940s. In 2002, it was decided to disconti ...
*
Z with stroke
Ƶ (minuscule: ƶ) is a letter of the Latin alphabet, derived from Z with the addition of a stroke through the centre.
Use in alphabets
Ƶ is used in the latin version of the Karachay-Balkar alphabet to represent palatalization, with ь as ...
*
ⱺ
ⱺ, or o with low ring inside, is a phonetic character from Landsmålsalfabetet, a phonetic alphabet for the transcription of Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specificall ...
References
Further reading
{{Citation
, title = Misidentification of alphanumeric symbols.
, publisher = ISMP Medication Safety Alert! Acute Care Edition
, year = 2000
, volume =5
, edition = 1
External links
*
International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers and Teachers of Handwriting
Latin-script letters
Writing
Graphology