In the interest of the preservation and transmission of the cultural and artistic heritage of Muslim civilization, the ADLANIA Foundation invites us to explore the world of Arabic writing from its origins to the present day.
Arabic calligraphy has been included on UNESCO’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity since December 14, 2021. This recognition as a major art, representative of the entire Muslim world, would certainly have been approved by the German poet Goethe (1789 – 1832), he who affirmed, two centuries ago : “ No language other than Arabic has been blessed with such harmony between the soul, the word and calligraphy”.
Haloed with a sacred aura, its task is to make visible the eternal beauty of the Qur’anic text by transmitting the message of the divine Word. Muslim copyists perfected this discipline with great rigor, calling it by its Arabic term khatt (line, or stroke of the pen).
This art, which is omnipresent in the visual landscape of early Islamic times, survives today as an uninterrupted tradition, handed down from one generation to the next.
Sheikh Khaled Bentounes
The history of writing
The history of writing, one of the pillars of human civilization, began approximately 14 centuries ago. Arabic writing has known a long process of evolution, developing from its primitive forms to its present-day form.
Genealogical tree of the evolution of different forms of writing before the common era.
The written word and the sacred
In the year 653 A.D. the Caliph ‘Uthman (574-656) unified the various texts of the Qur’an in order to create a single official version (al-Mushaf al-‘Uthmani). As the Arabic language spread, calligraphy became a major component of Arabo-Muslim art, largely thanks to these early manuscripts of the Qur’an.
In the Islamic arts, Arabic calligraphy reaches far beyond its purely utilitarian or decorative function. It blossoms into a form of living expression and a means of contemplation. It transcends the mere juxtaposition of words or of artistic forms, thus revealing meaning, symbolism, and astonishment. Just like a piece of music, it awaits our interpretation, inciting and inviting us to read the vast book of our world and to understand the essence of the divine decree.
The Meccan and Medinan periods
(610-661)
From the beginning of the 7th century A.D. the Qur’anic revelation was written down by a small group of scribes, including ‘Ali ibn Abu Talib, ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan, and other notable figures who made their mark on these early Meccan and Medinan periods.
Women calligraphers participated actively in the learning and teaching of writing and other branches of knowledge. They were encouraged by
the Prophet to study, as did the Meccan woman Al-Shifa bint ‘Abdullah al-Qurashiyah al-Adawiya (died 640) who was invited by the Prophet himself to be the teacher of his wife Hafsa (605-661).
The calligraphic style which emerged at the time, known as “Hijazi”, is recognizable by its generous and angular forms, with elongated letters whose vertical shafts lean to the right. This was the script that was most frequently used in copies of the Qur’an at the time, as Ibn al-Nadim (died 990) testifies in his catalogue (Al-Fihrist).
Inscription from Wadi al-Chamiya
(a few dozen kilometers north-east of Mecca)
The Umayyad period
(661-750)
The Umayyad period (661-750) witnessed the codification of the Hijazi style of writing, as well as the emergence of the Kufic style, frequently used for the Qur’an itself or for the ornamentation of monuments. The Kufic school which elaborated this style was born in the 8th century under the influence of Hassan al-Basri (642-728). Kufic writing is distinguished by its straight lines, angular forms, and the introduction of spaces between words. It achieved its apogee during the Abbasid period, with more than 70 variants.
Manuscript of the Qur’an Suras 102-110
8th century Style: Old Kufic Parchment, 19.5 x 13 cm
ADLANIA Foundation, Manuscripts, MAN-179
The Abbasid period
(750-1258)
During the Abbasid period (750-1258) Arabic calligraphy underwent remarkable diversification and ever-growing sophistication. The emergence of cursive script, known as “naskhi”, in the 10th century marked a departure from the angular Kufic style. This radical transformation was influenced by three great calligraphers who perfected the theory and practise of cursive writing, Ibn Muqla (886-940), Ibn Bawwab (died 1022) and Al-Musta’simi (1203-1298).
Manuscript of a Qur’an
Suras 101 – 92 – 93 and 94
Baghdad, 1001
Copyist: Ibn al-Bawwâb (m. 1022)
Paper, 17,7 x 13,7 cm
Styles: Naskhi and Thuluth
Chester Beatty Library, Is 1431
Persian period
(from 10th century to 17th century)
For centuries Persian calligraphy prospered, reaching its apogee between the 13th and 17th centuries with the emergence of refined styles such as Ta’liq and Nasta’liq. Eminent masters, such as Mir Ali Tabrizi (1330-1446), Mir Imad al-Hassani (1554-1615) or Mirza Gholamreza Isfahani (1830-1886) developed and enriched this art thanks to their creative genius and their technical mastery.
Manuscript of the Mesnevi
by Djalal al-Din Rumi
Iran, 15th century Style: Naskhi
Paper, 20 x 12 cm
ADLANIA Foundation, Manuscripts, MAN-195
Mamluk period in Egypt
(1250 – 1517)
During this period, Arabic calligraphy reached its pinnacle thanks to the patronage of Mamluk sultans such as Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Zaftawi (1349-1403) and Zayn al-din Abd al-Rahman b. Yusuf, also known by the name Ibn Sa’igh (1367-1442).
Manuscript of the Qur’an
Sura 9: 78-89
Styles: Naskhi and Thuluth
Paper, 29,5 x 21 cm
ADLANIA Foundation, Manuscripts, MAN-600
Ottoman period
(1299-1923)
Throughout the long reign of the Ottoman Empire (1299-1923) Arabic calligraphy flourished until reaching its highest level with the emergence of the Ottoman school and the introduction of styles such as Ruqa, Diwani, Tughra and Hilya. Ottoman calligraphers elaborated these unique styles to reflect both the ingenuity and the majesty of the Empire.
The Ruqa style, embodying sobriety and simplicity, spread along with Turkish expansion in the 15th century, while the Diwani style, born at around the same time, came to be the preferred artistic form of the chancellery and the sovereign power.
Calligraphy of the divine attributes and the names of the Prophet
1890
Copyist: Zubayr
Styles: Thuluth and Tughra
Paper, 83,8 x 61 cm
ADLANIA Foundation, Manuscripts, MAN-457
Writing tools and accessories
Over the centuries calligraphers have used a variety of instruments and tools to produce their works. The quill, fashioned from reed or other precious materials such as bone, silver or gold, is essential in calligraphy. Its precise size and its careful preparation are crucial in order to obtain perfectly-traced strokes. Other tools such as the penknife and the sharpener were used to sharpen the quills, while the ink-well, filled with specially-prepared ink, allowed the calligraphers to bring their creations to life. Different types of ink, such as “middad” and “hibr”, were favored for their specific properties, some of them containing ingredients ranging from alum to saffron, honey or rose water.
Writing case, quill-holder (qalamadan)and ink-well
calligraphy of verse 85 of Sura 21
20 x 2,5 cm
ADLANIA Foundation, Objects, OBJ-1588
Tradition and transmission
The very notion of tradition is closely linked to that of transmission of knowledge and innovation from one generation to the next. Never static or stale, tradition is perpetuated thanks to novelty, as we can see in the art of calligraphy which continuously blends tradition and modernity. This process also bears witness to the ethical nature of calligraphy itself, called “adab al-khatt”, the indissoluble link between artistic expression and spirituality, which reveals the spiritual geometry that resides in the act of forming and linking letters and words. The process of learning this art is shaped above all by the close relationship between master and disciple: the importance of being able to listen, to observe and thus to acquire knowledge that has real meaning. This is the ultimate reward for the master who is able to transmit knowledge.
Scroll of genealogical tree from Adam to the Ottoman sultans
Styles: Naskhi and Thuluth
Paper, 450 x 26 cm
ADLANIA Foundation, Manuscripts, MAN-608
ADLANIA Foundation, Manuscripts, MAN-564
Production under the direction of
Sheikh Khaled Bentounes
ARABIC CALLIGRAPHY
ink, dot, line