The
German
Documents
Gothic Typeface Lowercase
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur a is very similar to most modern handwritten a's: a single loop with a stem on the right. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Napoda | am |
 |
DescriptionThe letter b often has serifs protruding from the top stem, yet despite this it is usually fairly easy to recognize. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Zauberhauch | glaubte |
 |
DescriptionThe letter c is considerably thinner in Fraktur than in Roman typefaces, and will almost always occur followed by an h or a k. When this happens, the c is usually combined with the h or the k, to form unique ligatures. |
Examples
 |
 |
| reicht | Rackhoff |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur letter d is shaped very much like the Fraktur letter v. The upper portion of the right stem curves to the left, which may cause some confusion while reading certain words. |
Examples
 |
 |
| verschiedener | tausend |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur letter e is also considerably thinner than its Latin counterpart, although it is also fairly easy to identify. |
Examples
 |
 |
| einander | bildet |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur f always extends below the baseline but it is otherwise very similar to our modern Latin f. It can be easily confused with the Fraktur word-inital/medial s. The only difference between these two letters is that the cross-stroke on the f extends over to the right side of the letter, while the cross-stroke on the s is only on the left side. |
Examples
 |
 |
| auf | Wolfstein |
 |
DescriptionThe letter g is usually very easy to distinguish. Unlike the letter q, the downward stroke always forms a loop to the left. |
Examples
 |
 |
| genießt | gezeigt |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur h looks very similar to the Fraktur b. The difference is that the loop on the h is narrower and does not close, but extends vertically under the baseline. |
Examples
 |
 |
| früher | hundert |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur i closely resembles the Latin i. It is also very similar to the Fraktur j, the only difference being that the vertical stroke does not extend under the baseline and it curves slightly to the right. |
Examples
 |
 |
| seien | hielt |
 |
DescriptionThe j strongly resembles the i, except that its vertical stroke extends under the baseline and has serifs protruding from the bottom. |
Examples
 |
 |
| jüngere | jugendlich |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur k has serifs protruding from the main stem. The cross-stroke through the stem with the protruding hook is the only thing that differentiates it from the l. |
Examples
 |
 |
| stärker | Zwecke |
 |
DescriptionThe l is a simple stem with serifs protruding from the top. Unlike the k, it does not have a cross-stroke. |
Examples
 |
 |
| koeniglichen (königlichen) | linken |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur m is very much like the modern m. It is not to be confused with the w, from which it is differentiated by its three identical vertical strokes. |
Examples
 |
 |
| dem | meinem |
 |
DescriptionThe n looks exactly like its Latin counterpart, but it may often be confused with the u. Unlike the u, the n loops down and its main stem is always on the left. |
Examples
 |
 |
| niedrigeren | erschienen |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur o is just like the modern o. The difference between the o and the Fraktur a, with which it might be confused, is that the o has a vertical line on the left and it loops to the right, while the a does the opposite. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Gemeindeordnung | wo |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur p looks exactly like the modern p, which is a vertical stem extending under the baseline with a loop to the right over the baseline. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Spitze | Zanstorp |
 |
DescriptionThis q is very similar to the modern q except that it does not have a cross-stroke on its stem. It might be confused with a Fraktur g, although the difference is that the stem on the q is straight and does not loop. The q is always followed by a u. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Nachtquartier | Granitquadern |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur r is very much like its Latin counterpart. It might, however, be confused with the Fraktur x, which adds a hook to the bottom. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Zur | kriegerische |
 |
DescriptionThis s is used at the beginning of words or syllables, in between letters within a syllable. It is very similar to the Fraktur f, although s's cross-stroke only appears on the left side of the letter. |
Examples
 |
 |
| beschlossen | ist |
 |
DescriptionThis s is only used at the end of words or syllables. It is very much like the modern s except for its adorning upper and lower loops. |
Examples
 |
 |
| aus | dieses |
 |
DescriptionThe t looks exactly like its Latin counterpart, a vertical line with a cross-stroke through it over the mean line. |
Examples
|
|
| aus | dieses |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur u is often confused with the n. The only difference is that the u loops up and has its main stem on the right. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Gesetzbuchs | gut |
 |
DescriptionThe v looks very much like the Fraktur o, except that the vertical line on the left goes above the circle. |
Examples
 |
 |
| von | Randverf |
 |
DescriptionThe w might be confused with the m, from which it is differentiated by its longer first stem and its closed loop on the second stem. |
Examples
| wohnhaft | weil |
 |
DescriptionThe x is very rare. It may be confused with the r, except that the x has an extra upper hook on the bottom. |
Examples
 |
 |
| exakte | Raboux |
 |
DescriptionThe y is fairly similar to the h. The only difference is that, unlike the h, the stem on the y appears to be shorter and it does not have serifs protruding from the top. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Niederbayern | Huyn |
 |
DescriptionThe z is fairly similar to the modern z. It consists of a forward loop over the baseline and a tail that loops clockwise. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Bezirksamt | zwischen |
 |
DescriptionAn a-umlaut usually resembles a regular a except for the two diacritic marks above the mean line. These marks, called the umlaut, derive from the practice of writing a script letter e above certain vowels. (This is why ä is synonymous with ae. These two forms may appear interchangeably.) The Fraktur umlaut will always appear as two small dots directly above the vowel. |
Examples
 |
 |
| abwärts | feldmäßig |
 |
DescriptionThe Fraktur ö also usually resembles the o and may sometimes be interchangeable with oe. |
Examples
 |
 |
| Persönlichkeit | Löcher |
 |
DescriptionA ü many also be interchangeable with ue. |
Examples
 |
 |
| überdies | Bürgerlichen |
 |
DescriptionThe ß (Eszett or Sharp S) only appears as a lowercase letter and never begins a word or a syllable. (If the entire word is written in capital letters, the ß will appear as SS.) The Fraktur ß looks like the Fraktur s with two forward loops, resembling the modern Latin B. |
Examples
 |
 |
| gemäß | Größe |
