Articles

History of the “Usual” Nāgarī Typeface

Vostok/Oriens '2015, №3

 
For the first time in Russian language we have reviewed the history of the Devanagari typeface in Europe in general and August Wilhelm Schlegel’s typeface in specific. The article uses original sources: mail correspondence, archive and museum materials, unpublished and rare works from Russia, Germany, France, United Kingdom, and India. Government typographies of Russian Empire in St. Petersburg, Kazan and Kharkov used the “French” typeface, known as the old one. The “French” typeface was much more widespread than the “German” type, known in Europe as the new one. Based on its popularity, August Wilhelm Schlegel’s French font was called “ordinary” by several eminent Indologists in the nineteenth century Russian Empire.

Keywords: Indian script, Devanagari script, Sanskrit fonts, history of typography, Schlegel’s type.

Pages: С. 129–141