German Script Font

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From what I’ve seen many people associate old German script with “Sütterlin” but that’s just a part of it. Depending on time and area you’ll have to deal with old German script in many forms, not to mention the illegible chicken scratch some people call “individual handwriting”…

Before the 1940s, most records in German-speaking areas (as well as surname books, newspapers, journals and gazetteers) used a Gothic font called Fraktur. Handwritten documents were composed in cursive using a type of script known as blackletter. Old German Script Transcriber (alte deutsche Handschriften): See your family names in the script of the era. Type your name or other word into the font generator tool. Click on the 8 different fonts. Save the image to your computer and use it as you work with old Germanic records. Download 2497 Script Fonts. The best selection of Script Fonts for Windows and Macintosh. In addition to the script font, Bambi also comes with two dingbat fonts (one with a woodland theme, and one with a flower theme), as well as a variation called “ Bambi Berry ” which adds some cool stems and leaves to the script font! If you’d like to see everything Bambi has to offer, click here to view it on Creative Market!

Looking for German fonts? Click to find the best 178 free fonts in the German style. Every font is free to download!

Old German scripts: Kurrent type

One of the old German scripts is “Kurrent” which is based on late medieval cursive writing. There is no such thing as “the” Kurrent script as the script style developed and changed over time, depending on what the script was used for. “Kurrent” was mainly used until the first part of the 20th century.

Old German scripts: Sütterlin type

In 1911 a German graphic artist (Ludwig Sütterlin) was commissioned to create a modern handwriting script. This was characterized by simpler letters and vertical strokes, easier for kids to learn and write. “Sütterlin” was introduced in Prussia schools in 1915, slowly replacing the similar Kurrent script until in 1935 it officially became the only German script taught in schools. Actually Sütterlin is just a variation of the older Kurrent script.

Normalschrift

German Font In Word

Becoming the official school script at school in 1935 probably is why “Sütterlin” often is associated with the Nazi-time which is not quite correct. In 1941 the Nazi Party banned typefaces like Fraktur and Sütterlin. Why? They claimed them to be “Jewish”, what a complete bulls…, erm, mumakil dung heap… Those scripts were then replaced by the Latin-type “normal German handwriting” (Deutsche Normalschrift) and “Antiqua” or the likes.

Old German scripts: Fraktur type

Fonts

Fraktur is a calligraphic version of the Latin alphabet and other blackletter typefaces derived from this version. It was mainly used for print, and that’s probably where you will face Fraktur letters. You’ll often find blackletter fonts such as “Schwabacher” and “Normalfraktur” both of which came in several variations as well. Fraktur was banned by the Nazis in 1941 along with the Sütterlin and Kurrent script.

Interesting fact: Waaaaay before the beginning of modern age other European countries started to print documents and books in the more modern “Antiqua” font. German countries clung to the Fraktur fonts for much longer. But not completely… In those documents the German words often were printed in Fraktur while “foreign (based) words” (in Latin, French, English, etc.) were printed in Antiqua – within the same sentence.

A lot of the official texts were interspersed with French and Latin legal terms. Those documents and books looked quite interesting as you can see in the example above. This was a 1768 decree (repeating another decree of 1763) by the Archbishop of Cologne (“Erz=Bischof zu Cölln”), Maximilian Friderich, pertaining espousals and marriages by military persons. Apparently his officers hadn’t behaved as virtuous and honorable as he had hoped (and decreed)…

Comparison

Below you’ll find a few Kurrent and Fraktur fonts for comparison. They are provided free of charge (CC 0) by Peter Wiegel. He has even more on his website, not only old German fonts but others as well. I can only recommend his site.

Do you still have old handwritten documents from one or more of your ancestors? Aside from the individual handwriting… can you tell whether they used Kurrent, Suetterlin or another more modern handwriting? If you need a helping hand with a few words, don’t hesitate to contact me.

When I was young there was an old German poster in my family kitchen that used to drive me insane, because although I knew it was in German, I couldn’t read what was written on it. It looked to me like another language! “It’s because that is old German handwriting”, my mum told me. “Some of the letters look very different.” Today I’d like to show you what old German handwriting looks like, should you ever be faced with the same, confusing situation!

How To Read Old German Script Font

A little history first!

Old German Handschrift (handwriting), known as die Kurrentschrift or Kurrent for short in German, but also known simply as die alte deutsche Schrift (‘Old German script’), was closely modelled on the handwriting used in das Mittelalter (medieval times).

An updated version of Kurrent called Sütterlin was developed in the early 20th Century, and was used and taught in German schools until the government changed it to deutsche Normalschrift (‘normal German script’). This updated handwriting resembled das lateinisches Alphabet (Latin alphabet) more closely, and is the German handwriting that is still used and taught today.

Significant differences between old and new German handwriting

Old German Script Handwriting Font

A point of confusion with old German handwriting is that some of its letters don’t look like their modern counterparts. The characters for c, e, n, m, and u, for example, all look very similar, while the h looks more like an f. If you are interested in learning what the old letters look like, study this photo of Kurrentschrift to familiarise yourself with them:

19th Century German Script Font

Kurrentschrift:

By Deutsche_Kurrentschrift.jpg: AndreasPraefckederivative work: Martin Kozák (Deutsche_Kurrentschrift.jpg) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Sütterlin (the updated version of Kurrent, used in early 20th Century):

By Der Barbar [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Deutsche Normalschrift:

By Anhang zu RdErl. d. RMfWEV v. 1.9.1941 (Reichsministerium für Wissenschaft, Erziehung und Volksbildung) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Unlike old German, modern German handwriting is fairly easy to read and follow. Be sure to look out for the number 1, which can resemble a 7 at times. This is especially important when it comes to addressing letters and giving card details, for example!

German Script Regular Font

Here is a card sent to me by my German aunt, so you can see what modern German handwriting looks like ‘in action’!