Geometric principles play an essential role in Arabic calligraphy. As Khatibi and Sijelmassi write in The Splendor of Islamic Calligraphy, the legibility of a text and the beauty of its line require rules of proportion.

These rules of proportion are based upon the size of the alif. The first letter of the Arabic alphabet, the alif is, in essence, a straight, vertical stroke. Before we look further at the alif, we must consider the Arabic dot which is the unit of measurement in calligraphy. Khatibi and Sijelmassi refer to the dot as the calligrapher’s working unit.

The dot is a square impression formed by pressing the tip of the calligrapher’s pen to paper. The dimensions of each side of the square dot, write Khatibi and Sijelmassi, depend on the way the pen has been cut and on the pressure exerted by the fingers. Khatibi and Sijelmassi state that the pressure had to be sufficiently delicate and precise to separate the two sides of the nib, or point, of the pen.

The calligrapher’s reed pen, known as a tomar, consisted of 24 hairs of a donkey. How the pen was cut depended upon considerations like the calligrapher’s usage, the traditions of his native land, and the type of text being transcribed.

Depending on the calligrapher and the style of script, the height of the alif varied from three to 12 dots. The width of the alif was equivalent to one dot. “The important thing,” write Khatibi and Sijelmassi, “was to establish the height for each text. Once the calligrapher had his alif odule, he would draw it in the same way throughout the text. This was the general geometric principle, although in practice the calligrapher introduced variations. The arrangement of these variations is of great interest.”

The alif also was used as the diameter of an imaginary circle within which all Arabic letters could be written. Thus, three elements — that were chosen by the calligrapher — became the basis of proportion. These elements were the height of the alif, the width of the alif, and the imaginary circle.

In Naskh script, for example, the alif is five dots high. In Thuluth script, the alif is nine dots high with a crochet or hook of three dots at the top. A single character, which is the fundamental element in calligraphic writing, has a head, body and tail. The characters of calligraphic script also are interrelated with relationships of position, direction and interval. An interplay of curves and uprights, write Khatibi and Sijelmassi, articulate the words, vowels and points.

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The typical tools of the trade for a calligrapher included reed and brush pens, scissors, a knife for cutting the pens, an ink pot, and a sharpening tool. The reed pen, writes Safadi (1978), was the preferred pen of Islamic calligraphers. According to Safadi, the reed pen — called a qalam — remains an essential tool for a true calligrapher. “The traditional way to hold the pen,” writes Safadi, “is with middle finger, forefinger, and thumb well spaced out along the (pen’s) shaft. Only the lightest possible pressure is applied.”

The most esteemed reeds were native to the coastal lands of the Persian Gulf. Qalams were valued objects and were traded across the entire Muslim world. An accomplished and versatile scribe would require different qalams in order to achieve different degrees of fineness. Franz Rosenthal notes in Abu Haiyan al-Tawhidi on Penmanship (1948) that shaping the reed was one of the significant skills acquired by the scribe: “Make your knife sharper than a razor; do not cut any thing else with it but the calamus (qalam), and take very good care of it. Let your miqatt be the toughest wood available, so that the point may come out evenly.”

The standard length of a qalam ranged from 9.5 to 12 inches with a diameter of about a half-inch. David James notes in Sacred and Secular Writings (1988) that these reeds were cut in the marshes and left to lie there for weeks until they had become supple. Then they were gathered, sorted, cut, and trimmed.

Calligraphers had thorough knowledge on how to identify the best cane suitable for a good pen, how to trim the nib and cut the point, and how to split the cane exactly in the center so that the nib had equal halves. A good pen was cherished and, sometimes, was even handed down to another generation. Other times, it was buried with the calligrapher when he died.

Ink was of many colors including black, brown, yellow, red, blue, white, silver, and gold. Black and brown inks were often used, since their intensities and consistencies could vary greatly. Many calligraphers provided instructions on how to prepare ink, while others implied that their recipes were guarded secrets. The ink made by the Persians, Indians, and the Turks would stay fresh for a considerable amount of time. Ink preparation could take several days and involve many complex chemical processes.

David James writes that although techniques varied from one place to another, most inks were based on soot or lamp-black mixed with water and gum-Arabic. Other ingredients are indigo, minced gall-nuts, and henna. The final stage of preparation involved straining the ink through silk. Also, the ink might be perfumed if desired.

Welch (1979) adds that the instruments of writing figure among the very first divine creations and came to serve as ready similes for mortal lives. With its power to preserve knowledge and extend thought over time and space, ink was compared to the water of life that gives immortality, while human beings were likened to so many pens in Allah’s hand.

Paper was introduced in 751 from China via Samarqand. That was a turning point in the art of writing. Paper would play a major role in countless subsequent inventions and would reform Arabic calligraphy. This new medium of written communication had a decisive impact on every aspect of Islamic civilization.

Paper was made from cotton, and sometimes from silk or other fibers, but not from wood pulp. The paper was polished with a smooth stone like agate or jade before the calligrapher began to write. Guide lines were inscribed with a point. The script stood on these barely visible lines or sometimes was suspended from them.

When calligraphers developed the idea of independent or original compositions, each one had to be worked out from scratch. Once devised, a calligraphic composition might be copied time and time again by masters in places as far apart as India and Istanbul. As in most of the traditional arts, less emphasis was placed on innovation than on emulation of the great masters — both contemporary and past masters. Nevertheless, some of the masters were outstanding innovators.

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The lines of calligraphers have neither beginning nor end as they constantly link and unlink. The calligrapher’s work lies in search of the absolute; his aim is to penetrate the sense of truth in an infinite movement so as to go beyond the existing world and thus achieve union with God.

– Salah al-Ali (quotes in Musee d’art et d’histoire. “Islamic Calligraphy: Sacred and Secular Writings”. Catalog of an exhibition held at the Musee d’art et d’histoire, Geneva and other locations 1988-1989, p. 30)

Calligraphers were dedicated to their work. David James writes in Sacred and Secular Writings (1988, p.22) that calligraphers often wrote, not at a small table but seated on the floor, holding the paper on their knees and supporting it with a piece of cardboard. Calligraphers had to be trained from a young age, sometimes from childhood; they studied examples called mufradat which had the letters of the alphabet written out singly and in combination with other letters.

The great calligraphers could write perfectly even without the proper tools and materials. Although a calligraphic master might be deprived of the use of his preferred hand either as a punishment or in the battle field, he would learn to write equally well with his other hand. When the other hand failed him, he would astound his admirers by using his mouth or feet to hold the pen.

An aspiring scribe would observe his predecessors’ art very carefully. To perfect his touch, sharpen his skills, and find a style of his preference, the scribe would imitate the masters of calligraphy with a diligent hand. Welch (1979, p. 34) cites the following quote from the Sultan Ali’s treatise on calligraphy:

Collect the writing of the masters,
Throw a glance at this and at that,
For whomsoever you feel a natural attraction,
Besides his writing, you must not look at others,
So that your eye should become saturated with his writing,
And because of his writing each of your letters should
become like a pearl.

al-Bawwab reproduced the writing of Ibn Muqlah so exactly that his employer, the Buyid amir Baha’ ad-Dawlah of Shiraz, could not tell the difference.

Arabic calligraphers integrate inner experiences with their experiences of external reality. By imbuing strokes with life and feeling, an equilibrium of energy flows from all composing elements. A calligrapher’s integration of inner and external realities results in a very personalized style and is accompanied by concentrated and unremitting scholarly study. The development of a calligraphy style is as unique as the calligrapher’s personality, and its achievement is considered as the representation of the individual’s self-cultivation.

It is fascinating to think how great calligraphers such as Ibn Muqlah, Ibn al-Bawwab, and Yaqut al-Musta’simi strove for knowledge and made use of all possible resources from the past.

In almost all of the Arabic scripts, the spacing between lines and words overflows with a sense of freedom and a flexibility that reveals the creativity and spontaneity of the calligrapher. Through the calligrapher’s momentum and sense of balance, a tranquil harmony is achieved that immediately appeals to the mind and to the heart.

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As the teachings of Islam spread beyond the boundaries of the Arabian Peninsula, an enormous number of people worldwide became Muslims. The new Muslims interpreted the art of writing as an abstract expression of Islam, each according to their own cultural and aesthetic systems. The influx of this cultural diversity led to two major events: the birth of regional calligraphic schools and styles such as Ta’liq in Persia and Deewani in Turkey, and the need to reform of the Arabic language. A clear and universal language with legible script was needed if the non-Arab Muslims were to learn Arabic and become part of the Islamic melting pot.

The first movement to reform the Arabic language and writing system came during the Umayyad era. Abul Aswad ad-Du’ali was the prophet and legendary founder of Arabic grammar and is credited with the invention of placing diacritical points to distinguish between certain identical consonants such as the ‘gaf’ and ‘fa’ in the Arabic alphabet. This system of diacritical marks is known as Tashkil (vocalization). Different colors also were introduced to differentiate between these marks–black for the diacriticals and red or yellow for the vocalics.

The powerful and energetic Umayyad viceroy al-Hajjaj Ibn Yousuf al-Thaqafi (694-714), took on the responsibility of solving problems concerning diacriticals. He commissioned Nasr and Yehya to refine the Tashkil system. They introduced the use of dots and certain vowel signs as differentiating marks. The dots were placed either above or beneath the letter, either single or in groups of two or three.

Unfortunately, for many people and scribes the system was unclear and confusing. A more sophisticated system was needed. The second reform movement was undertaken around 786. Khalil Ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi, the famous Arab philologist and lexicographer, was entrusted with devising a new Tashkil system. Al-Farahidi introduced vowel signs inspired by the initial shape or parts of certain letters. The sign ‘hamza,’ for example, is part of the letter ‘ayn’ (without its end-tail).

The new system gained wide popularity throughout the Muslim world. And Arabic calligraphy acquired the characteristics of beauty, sanctity, and versatility. Arabic calligraphy was used administratively, on architecture, on coins, to pen impressive epistles, and to produce elegant books, especially the Holy Qur’an, miniatures, and other literary works.

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The early Arabs were basically a nomadic people. Their lives were hard before Islam, but their culture was prolific in terms of writing and poetry. Long before they were gathered into the Islamic fold, the nomadic Arabs acknowledged the power and beauty of words. Poetry, for example, was an essential part of daily life. The delight Arabs took in language and linguistic skills also would be exhibited in Arabic literature and calligraphy. The early Arabs felt an immense appreciation for the spoken word and later for its written form.

Arabic script is derived from the Aramaic Nabataean alphabet. The Arabic alphabet is a script of 28 letters and uses long but not short vowels. The letters are derived from only 17 distinct forms, distinguished one from another by a dot or dots placed above or below the letter. Short vowels are indicated by small diagonal strokes above or below letters.

The Nabataean were semi-nomadic Arabs who dwelled in an area extending from Sinai and North Arabia to southern Syria. Their empire included the major cities of Hijr, Petra, and Busra. Although the Nabataean empire ended in 105 A.D., its language and script would have profound impact upon the early development of Arabic scripts.

Archeologists and linguists have analyzed and studied the Nabataean inscriptions that represent the advanced transitional stage toward the development of such Arabic scripts as the Um al-Jimal, dating from about 250 A.D., and the Namarah of the famous pre-Islamic poet Imru’ al-Qays, dating from 328 A.D. Another inscription from Um al-Jimal, dating from the 6th century, confirms the derivation of the Arabic script from the Nabataean and points to the birth of distinctive Arabic writing forms.

North Arabic script was first introduced and established in the northeastern part of Arabia. During the 5th century, Arabian nomadic tribes who dwelled in the areas of Hirah and Anbar used this script extensively. In the early part of the 6th century, the North Arabic script reached Hijaz in western Arabia. Bishr Ibn Abd al-Malik and his father-in-law Harb Ibn Umayyah are credited with introducing and popularizing the use of this script among the tribe of the Prophet Muhammad, Quraysh. Other tribes in nearby cities adopted with enthusiasm the art of writing.

Jazm is the earliest referenced Arabic script. This script is believed to be an advanced form of the Nabataean alphabet. The stiff, angular, and well-proportioned letters of the Jazm script would later influence the development of the famous Kufi script — the script of Kufa, a small town in Iraq.

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