How it works
- Type a name or a one-word heading. A full sentence in fraktur is slow to read.
- Compare regular fraktur with bold fraktur. The regular row notes the letters taken from an older block.
- Copy one row and paste it beside plain text, then look at it in the app you will post to.
Fraktur, not a gothic font file
The letters come from the Mathematical Alphanumeric Symbols block. Unicode named the alphabet Fraktur because mathematicians already used blackletter for some symbols. Bold fraktur is the heavier cut of the same idea.
Nothing here joins the letters into handwriting. Script does that kind of curve. Fraktur keeps the broken, angular shapes instead.
Old English is the search name, not the language
People often search for this blackletter style under the name Old English. What this page produces is Unicode Fraktur letters. It does not write the Old English language, and it does not install a historical font.
You type today's letters. Each one is swapped for a Fraktur character where Unicode has one. A font file from a printer's case would be a different thing, and this page does not ship one.
Letters taken from an older block
C, H, I, R and Z were encoded years earlier in Letterlike Symbols. The maths block leaves holes for them, and this page fills those holes with the older characters, such as the black-letter capital C at U+212D.
In some fonts those five look a little unlike the letters beside them. Bold fraktur has no holes, so every bold letter comes from the same block.
Where blackletter still gets used
A band name, a poster title, a one-word bio line or a heading in a caption. Pair a title with cursive script letters or bold sans-serif letters when the next word should be easier to read, or open every style on one page. For round letters instead, circled bubble letters are a separate page.
It is a weak choice for body copy. The shapes are easy to mix up at a glance, especially i and l, and especially on a small screen.
Empty boxes and screen readers
Phones that lack the fraktur glyphs show empty boxes. Bold fraktur is less common in fonts than plain bold, so test both rows on the device you care about.
Fraktur letters can be read one by one, or skipped, by screen readers. Do not rely on them for important information, and do not use them as the only copy of a link, name or address. For a glitch instead of blackletter, marks stacked above and below the letters are a separate effect.
More text styles
Frequently asked questions
What is gothic text in Unicode?
It is the fraktur alphabet: blackletter shapes stored as individual characters. Bold fraktur is the heavier version of those same letters.
Is this Old English text?
People often use the name Old English for this blackletter look. The characters are Unicode Fraktur letters, not the Old English language and not a historical font.
Why do some gothic letters look different?
C, H, I, R and Z come from the Letterlike Symbols block, so a font may draw them in a slightly different cut from the maths-block letters.
Do I need to install a gothic font?
No. You copy the characters and paste them. The reader's font has to include those characters or it will show boxes.
Can I write a whole post in fraktur?
You can, but most people will struggle to read it. A name or a short heading is the usual place for it.
Is gothic text the same as cursive?
No. Cursive here means Unicode script letters, which are round. Fraktur is angular blackletter, and the two alphabets do not share characters.