We typically get requested how typeface designers come up with names for his or her fonts. It’s not as simple as it may appear, as every studio and particular person designer has their distinctive strategy. In this text, we’ll discover completely different features of font naming—from artistic concerns to authorized implications.
Why must you strategy font naming with cautious consideration? What standards must you use, and what elements must you preserve in thoughts? Let’s dive in and look at actual examples from our typeface assortment.
How a Kind Designer Can Select a Title for a Font
A font’s title is a essential a part of its id and presentation. A well-chosen typeface title not solely helps emphasize the design idea but additionally contributes to its profitable promotion.
As an illustration, an authentic, artistic title can draw consideration to an experimental or uncommon font household. In the meantime, a easy and concise title might help customers choose your font for particular design duties.
In essence, the way you title your font can considerably affect its success. Let’s discover what makes a good font title stand out from the remainder.
Standards for a Good Font Household Title
Whereas these standards are subjective, at TypeType we comply with a number of necessary rules when deciding title our fonts:
- Uniqueness
- Relevance to the typeface design
- Visible and acoustic attraction
- Designer’s perspective
Let’s look at every of these standards in element.
Uniqueness
Uniqueness is the primary and most important parameter to take into account when selecting a typeface title, and right here’s why:
- It prevents confusion with different typeface households (we attempt to keep away from names that look or sound much like present ones)
- An authentic title helps your font stand out and emphasizes its individuality
- Some typography studios register their font names, and utilizing comparable names might result in authorized points. For instance, at TypeType, we have two legally protected font names: TT Norms® Professional and TT Commons™ Professional
Talking of “TT”: to make names distinctive and emphasize model possession, a sort foundry can add their studio abbreviation to the household title. For instance, TT (TypeType), FF (FontFont), PT (ParaType), and so on.
Learn how to Test the Uniqueness of a Font Title
The principle problem you’ll possible face when selecting a font title is that many names are already taken.
Right here’s confirm if your chosen title is distinctive:
- Test the title on Typeface title verify and Identifont web sites
- If no comparable choices seem, broaden your search to font marketplaces like MyFonts
- Lastly, carry out a Google search utilizing the format: [font name] + font or typeface to make sure the title isn’t used elsewhere
Relevance to the Typeface Design
The subsequent criterion is how nicely the title matches the font household itself. It’s helpful when the title displays the product’s essence and helps customers perceive the typeface’s character and the designer’s intent.
When the chosen title helps talk the designer’s idea, meant use, and software areas, it positively impacts the font’s advertising potential.
Visible and Acoustic Enchantment
First impressions matter in typography too, and the title influences the general notion of your font household.
When choosing a title, take into account the associations it would possibly evoke. Look at the way it seems in writing, how the letters work collectively, its readability, and whether or not it sounds much like any phrases with unlucky meanings. Do not forget that each optimistic and adverse associations can have an effect on how folks understand your typeface.
An necessary consideration when making a new phrase: confirm its which means—it could be utilized in slang, have adverse connotations, offend sure teams, or have inappropriate translations in different main languages. A search engine or on-line translator may be useful right here.
At TypeType, we additionally attempt to select font names that showcase essentially the most fascinating and distinctive glyphs from the typeface.
Designer’s Perspective
The ultimate criterion, which we name “Designer’s Perspective,” leads us to how we title our typefaces at TypeType. Often, the idea’s creator is chargeable for naming the font, aiming to mirror their imaginative and prescient of the undertaking.
Let’s have a look at some examples of our naming strategy.
What Logic Did We Use to Title Our Fonts: Actual Examples
Since our studio’s basis, we’ve maintained a constant logic for all font names, giving them significant identities.
Our bestseller TT Norms® Professional acquired its title as a result of it’s “regular”—normal and appropriate for every little thing. It’s the right basis for any undertaking.
One other bestseller, TT Commons™ Professional, means that it’s “frequent”—impartial sufficient to work in any undertaking or process. It’s a typeface that can reliably help your design from all angles.
TT Hoves Professional’s title combines the primary syllables of two phrases: horizontals and verticals. This geometric typeface emphasizes horizontal and vertical components.
For TT Livret, designer Yulia Gonina needed the font to be utilized in books, so the title comes from the French “petit livre” (little ebook).
The TT Ricordi household options Italian names, as all these designs have been impressed by historic inscriptions discovered on Italian stones and plaques. As an illustration, in TT Ricordi Fulmini,
“Fulmini” means “lightning” in Italian, whereas “Allegria” in TT Ricordi Allegria means “cheerfulness.”
TT Marxiana’s title has historic roots too. This typeface household was impressed by fonts utilized in the 1887 “Niva” journal, printed by Adolf Marx’s publishing home. The title honors the writer’s surname.
The Neo-Grotesque transformer TT Neoris combines two phrases: “neo” (new) and “rise.” These phrases mirror our fashionable strategy to Neo-Grotesque typefaces, as we performed in depth analysis to make it actually progressive.
For the experimental TT Carvist, designer Alina Gabidulova began with font associations, utilizing each on-line sources and suggestions from buddies and acquaintances. The ensuing listing included Gothic and historic Slavic components, connections, bilingualism, folks artwork, patterns, ornaments, lace, stained glass, embroidery, weaving, labyrinths, and posters. Based mostly on these associations, Alina used Google Translate to seek for corresponding phrases and ideas in completely different languages. Ultimately, two choices made it to the ultimate spherical:
“TT Cyrthic” and “TT A0”, each accessible and appropriate in which means. Nevertheless, it turned out that trying to find “TT A0” yielded utterly unsuitable outcomes. The ultimate title—TT Carvist—refers to stone carving, rising after advertising crew refinement of these preliminary ideas.
In our current experimental undertaking TT Modernoir, designer Toma Streltsova drew inspiration from French Artwork Nouveau typography and movie noir aesthetics, which is mirrored in the title of this typeface.
Conclusion
Now you’ll be able to see the significance of selecting an authentic and interesting title on your font. We hope our expertise and ideas will assist you in this difficult process! In any case, if you’ve created an complete typeface, naming it ought to be the simple half!
