Junicode: Difference between revisions

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{{Infobox font

| name = Junicode

| image = Junicode yellow-2207-specimen.svg

| style = [[Serif]]

| classifications = [[Serif#Old Style|Old-style]]

| variations = Regular, Italic, Bold, Bold Italic

| creator = Peter S. Baker

| foundry =

| license = [[SIL Open Font License|OFL]]

| sample = [[Image:Junicode sample.svg|240px|Junicode sample text]]

| releasedatelatest_release_date = {{release date and age|20182025|068|25|df=yes22}} (12.002218)

| creationdate = 2001|

|}}

'''Junicode''' ("Junius-Unicode") is a [[Free Softwareand open-source software|free and open-source]] ([[SIL Open Font License]]) [[Serif#Old-style|old-style serif]] [[typeface]] developed by [[Peter S. Baker]] of the [[University of Virginia]]. TheT‌he design is based on a 17th-century typeface used in [[Oxford]], [[England]].

Junicode contains many special characters and [[typographic ligature|ligatures]] for [[medievalist]]s, along with numerous other [[Unicode]] glyphs. TheT‌he font has [[OpenType]] features for advanced [[typesetting]] and includes true [[small caps]].

TheSince mostAugust recent2023, revisionJunicode ofhas Junicodebeen isa 2.001,[[variable releasedfont]] onand 19remains Aug.under 2023active development.<ref>{{citeCite web|title=Release Junicode version 2.000 · psb1558/Junicode-font|url=https://github.com/psb1558/Junicode-font/releases/tag/v2.001000|titlewebsite=Junicode v2.001[[GitHub]]|date=2023-08-1918|access-datelanguage=2023-08-19en}}</ref>

==Design==

[[Image:Garamond junicode caslon.png|thumb|right|250px|A comparison between (1) Adobe Garamond Pro, (2) Junicode, (3) Adobe Caslon Pro]]

TheT‌he designs of the Junicode roman characters are based on a 17th-century typeface design used at the [[Oxford University Press]], also known as Clarendon Press. Peter Baker based the Junicode roman design on those used in [[George Hickes (divine)|George Hickes]]' ''Linguarum Vett. Septentrionalium ThesaurusT‌hesaurus'' (1703–1705), naming the typeface Junicode ("Junius Unicode") after [[Franciscus Junius (the younger)|Franciscus Junius]], who had commissioned the original typeface used for the Anglo-Saxon texts in that volume, "Pica Saxon".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oenewsletter.org/OEN/archive/OEN40_1.pdf|author=Peter S. Baker|year=2006|title=Typing in Old English since 1967: A Brief History|work=[[Old English Newsletter]] Online|at=Volume 40.1|access-date=2015-07-14}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=httphttps://junicode.sourceforge.net/design.html|title=Design and History of Junicode (@ Junicode's SourceForge page)|access-date=2015-07-14}}</ref> TheT‌he designs represent an intermediate stage between earlier 16th century typefaces (such as [[Garamond]]) and later 18th century typefaces (such as [[Caslon]]). TheT‌he Junicode roman character design shares a number of features with these earlier and later typefaces.

Junicode has an individual [[Greek alphabet|Greek]] typeface, Foulis Greek. TheT‌he design is a traditional revival as well. It is based on the Greek Double Pica cut by [[Alexander Wilson (astronomer)|Alexander Wilson]] (c. 1714–1786), a Scottish [[physician|doctor]], [[astronomer]], and typefounder. Wilson's typeface was used in 1756–1758 for a renowned edition of [[Homer]]'s epics (the [[Iliad]] and the [[Odyssey]]),<ref name="BrownMcDougall2011">{{cite book|author1=Stephen Brown|author2=Warren McDougall|title=TheT‌he Edinburgh History of the Book in Scotland, Volume 2: Enlightenment and Expansion 1707-1800|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QYxvAAAAQBAJ&pg=PT86|date=30 November 2011|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-7486-5095-8|page=86}}</ref><ref name="Vogel2013">{{cite web|last1=Vogel|first1=David|title=October 16: Alexander Wilson|url=http://designersalmanac.com/2013/10/16/october-16-alexander-wilson/|website=TheT‌he Designer's Almanac|access-date=30 January 2015|date=16 October 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150130192529/http://designersalmanac.com/2013/10/16/october-16-alexander-wilson/|archive-date=30 January 2015}}</ref> printed by [[Robert Foulis (printer)|Robert Foulis]] and [[Andrew Foulis]] of the Foulis Publishing House and printers to the [[University of Glasgow]]. TheT‌he characters previously included in Junicode font, since version 1.000, moved into a separate font.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sourceforge.net/projects/junicode/files/junicode/junicode-1.000/|title=Release Name: junicode-1.000|date=2017-09-18|access-date=2017-09-30}}</ref>

==Origins and uses==

TheT‌he Junicode font was developed especially for medievalists, due to the need for a font to cover the large number of special characters and ligatures used in medieval [[manuscript]]s. TheT‌he font has complete support for the [[Medieval Unicode Font Initiative]] version 4.0 in the regular and italic faces.

Despite the specialization of Junicode for the needs of medievalists, the font is quite complete and supports a large number of Unicode characters. In the regular style, over 3000 characters are available. ThisT‌his makes Junicode useful for a wide range of languages that utilize the [[Latin alphabet]], including scholarly texts and publications that require special [[diacritics]] not traditionally found in conventional fonts. It exists in regular, italic, bold and bold italic styles, with the regular style having the largest character set. Regular and bold styles have [[small caps]] and all styles have [[Swash (typography)|swash]] alternates, although not a complete set of italic swash capitals.

Junicode has a very wide linespacing in many applications due to its numerous tall characters with stacked diacritics.

==Availability and development==

Junicode is [[free and [[Openopen-source software|free and open source]] software licensed under the [[SIL Open Font License]], and is released in the [[TrueType]] format, which is used on most [[operating system]]s. Additionally, specific packages for Junicode are available for open source systems such as [[Debian]], [[Ubuntu (operating system)|Ubuntu]], and [[FreeBSD]].

TheT‌he Junicode font is developed in the [[FontForge]] typeface editing program. TheT‌he font includes TrueType [[font hinting|hinting]], generated by the ttfautohint program.

==See also==

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{{commons category|Junicode}}

*[https://psb1558.github.io/Junicode-font/ Junicode 2 website]

*[httphttps://junicodegithub.sourceforge.netcom/psb1558/Junicode-font/ Junicode 12 development site website(Github)]

*[https://junicode.sourceforge.net/ Junicode 1 website]

*[http://www.engl.virginia.edu/people/psb6m Peter S. Baker], University of Virginia staff page

*[http://mufi.info MUFI font page]