One story a for æ

Ofir Shavit
Ofir Shavit Posts: 397
in Technique and Theory

Hi
I'm working on a font with one story 'a', and the 'æ' resembles too much to the 'œ'.

Any recommendations?
aoe.jpg 36.9K

Comments

  • Alexis Luengas
    Alexis Luengas Posts: 36
    You could (a) make /a/ more asymmetrical/cursive, (b) draw the stem or add a small serif at the top of /a/, and/or (c) flatten the left side of /e/s bowl so that /e/ appears to join /a/ and not the other (current) way around.
  • Ofir Shavit
    Ofir Shavit Posts: 397

    Well I added the stem and flattened the e's bowl, looks like it does the work
    Thanks Alexis!
  • Craig Eliason
    Craig Eliason Posts: 1,437
    The other left side...
  • Nick Shinn
    Nick Shinn Posts: 2,210
    You should use a two-story “a”. That is preferred in Scandinavia. See Futura, etc.
  • Ofir Shavit
    Ofir Shavit Posts: 397
    edited September 2014
    What other left side Craig??

    Is it ok to use the two-story 'a' only to the 'æ' while the 'a' stays one-story?
  • Craig Eliason
    Craig Eliason Posts: 1,437
    Never mind. I thought you had added that flat part on the right of the /e/ in response to Alexis's suggestion to "flatten the left side of /e/'s bowl," but I see that that was already there in the first place. Disregard.
  • Ofir Shavit
    Ofir Shavit Posts: 397
    Got you, thanks :)
  • Ofir Shavit
    Ofir Shavit Posts: 397

    Your humble what? what? what? opinion sounds convincing Frode, thanks!
  • Kent Lew
    Kent Lew Posts: 944
    It is perfectly acceptable to have a one-story a, and a two-story æ.
    Frode — Do you feel the same is true in an italic design? I’ve heard mixed responses to this before.
  • Chris Lozos
    Chris Lozos Posts: 1,458
    Which is better, having a style match or having clear legibility or distinction? I prefer 2 story a to style match.
  • Jens Kutilek
    Jens Kutilek Posts: 364
    Under which circumstances would æ and œ need to be differentiated? They are not both used in the same language, or are they?
  • Nick Shinn
    Nick Shinn Posts: 2,210
    edited September 2014
    There is never dissonance between /a and /æ, because they are always a saccadic jump apart. They are never read concurrently—when one is viewed sharply in the fovea, the other is indistinguishable, elsewhere.
  • Chris Lozos
    Chris Lozos Posts: 1,458
    Great test words, Frode!
  • Nick Shinn
    Nick Shinn Posts: 2,210
    I suspected as much, Frode! Are those common words?
  • Craig Eliason
    Craig Eliason Posts: 1,437
    edited September 2014
    Under which circumstances would æ and œ need to be differentiated? They are not both used in the same language, or are they?
    Used in the same word, if archaic English orthography is allowed!
    image
    But posted mostly in jest: the more important question is, are there languages in which there are two words that differ only in that character. I don't know of any.
  • Nick Shinn
    Nick Shinn Posts: 2,210
    edited September 2014
    Note that A : Æ and a : æ are differently treated in the same typeface—Futura.

    **

    I recently decided to construct Æ as per Futura—so that I can include it in the same kern class as A!
  • John Hudson
    John Hudson Posts: 3,206
    They are not both used in the same language, or are they?
    They can be used together in Latin, although ae/oe is now preferred to æ/œ by classicists. Not sure about mediaevalists. Roman Catholic liturgical publishers still seem to favour æ/œ.
  • Ofir Shavit
    Ofir Shavit Posts: 397
    How about that?

    Since not restricted to the one story a, I tried flipping the e for the ae
  • Nick Shinn
    Nick Shinn Posts: 2,210
    Typophile discussion. http://typophile.com/node/68510
  • Michael Vokits
    Michael Vokits Posts: 214
    @Ofir:
    Since not restricted to the one story a, I tried flipping the e for the ae
    I do that in italics all the time, but the /schwa shape for the /a really throws me in romans. Still, it's probably the best choice in the context of your font (although I think I prefer the glyph with the vertical bar in the middle). Anyway, it's easy to add and use alternates.

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