Frank-Rühl

Frank-Rühl is one of the most prominent Hebrew typefaces, designed by Rafael Frank between 1908 and 1910. It was originally issued by the C.F. Rühl foundry in Leipzig as "Frank-Rühl-Hebräisch".[1]

History and design

Rafael Frank (1867–1920), a German-Jewish typographer, for the C.F. Rühl foundry in Leipzig. The foundry later merged with the H. Berthold AG in Berlin. The typeface was released between 1908 and 1910. The typeface was intended to modernize Hebrew printing, making it more suitable for secular texts while still adhering to traditional Jewish typographic norms.[2] Frank also designed the font Miryam.[3] In designing his alphabet, he drew inspiration from the style of the earliest prints, particularly those from Venice, and made noticeable adjustments to similar-looking letters for educational clarity.[4] The typeface quickly gained popularity and was widely adopted by printing houses across Europe. It became the standard for Hebrew printing, especially in newspapers and books.[2]

A sample of the typeface
A sample of the typeface

Distribution today

Several digital versions of Frank-Rühl have been created, including FrankRuehl (Kivun Computers Ltd.), Frank Ruehl BT (Bitstream), and Frank Ruhl Libre (Fontef).[1]

References

  1. ^ a b "Frank-Rühl in use". Fonts in Use. Retrieved 2024-10-15.
  2. ^ a b "Rafael Frank - the Designer of the Most Common Hebrew Font in Print — AlefAlefAlef". AlefAlefAlef — House of Hebrew typography. 2017-03-11. Retrieved 2024-10-15.
  3. ^ Avrin, Leila (1988). Singer Gold, Leonard (ed.). The art of the Hebrew book in the twentieth century. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 125–139. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  4. ^ Frank, Rafael (1926). Über hebräische Typen und Schriftarten (in German). Berlin. p. 28.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)