Syntax (font)
The syntax is a font . It is a sans serif linear antiqua that was designed by Hans Eduard Meier from 1968 to 1972 , but which he had been working on since the 1950s.
Syntax was first published in 1972 by D. Stempel AG . It is still one of the most frequently used sans serif fonts .
features
For Hans Eduard Meier, the driving force behind the development of syntax was the realization that the available sans serif fonts were not sufficient in formal terms. As a calligrapher who was used to writing pen-sized letters, he rejected the rigid forms of the sans serif fonts that were available in print shops in the 1950s and 1960s ( Akzidenz-Grotesk , Haas-Grotesk or Helvetica , Mono-Grotesk). For the syntax, Meier resorted to the form principle of the Renaissance Antiqua , which concerns the lines and the proportions of the capital height to the x-height, the upper and lower length . The result is a font with a strong character that is inclined a nuance to the right and whose round and diagonal lines optically end with right-angled ends.
From 1995 onwards, Meier and Linotype reworked the syntax font family. On the one hand, he refined the original syntax (now: Linotype Syntax) and expanded it with additional styles. On the other hand, he added three more families to the sans serif family: Linotype Syntax Serif (a version of the syntax fonts, but with serifs ), Linotype Syntax Letter (a handwriting-like serif variant) and Linotype Syntax Lapidar (an allusion to chiseled ancient fonts, for Syntax suitable). In total, the font families mentioned comprise more than 100 font weights , several of which are so-called alternate fonts ( small caps , old-style figures ).
See also
literature
- Max Caflisch : Font analyzes Verlag Typotron, St.Gallen
