Typography

Typography (performed by a typographer) is the art of arranging letters on a page to be printed, usually for a combination of aesthetic and functional goals.

While the term orthography usually refers to correct writing in general, typography includes

• thoughtful selection and use of typefaces (fonts);
• correct use of emphasis;
• optional decoration[?] such as initials[?];
• adhering to rules of typographical syntax[?], such as when to use a hyphen vs. a dash, or what glyphs to use for quotation marks, which varies greatly among different languages.

The term typography has broadened to include arranging text on the computer screen. When an overall layout specification has to handle a range of actual content – whether on screen or not –, the term more often used is information design.

Note that type design is generally considered a separate activity from typography, although it can be considered a branch thereof.

Related articles

• Typefaces
• Printing press
• Typographic units
• Graphic design
• Desktop publishing
• Word processor
• Kerning