The anatomies of typography are
the structure of the letter. Typographic characters
have basic component parts. The easiest way to identify characteristics
of type designs is by comparing the structure of these components. The
following terms identify some of the components.
1) Ampersand
A stylized character of the Latin et used to represent the word and.
Definition: The typographic symbol used to designate the word and (&
) is the Latin symbol for et which means and.
2) Aperture
The partially enclosed, somewhat rounded negative space in some
characters. Definition: The aperture is the partially enclosed, somewhat
rounded negative space in some characters such as n, C, S, the lower
part of e, or the upper part of a double-storey a.
3) Apex
A point at the top of a character where two strokes meet. Definition:
The point at the top of a character such as the uppercase A where the
left and right strokes meet is the apex. The apex may be a sharp point,
blunt, or rounded and is an identifying feature for some typefaces.
4) Arc of Stem
A curved stroke that is continuous with a straight stem.
5) Arm
A horizontal or upward, sloping stroke that does not connect to a stroke
or stem on one or both ends. Definition: The arm of a letter is the
horizontal stroke on some characters that does not connect to a stroke
or stem at one or both ends.
6) Ascender
An upward vertical stroke found on the part of lowercase letters that
extends above the typeface’s x-height. Definition: In typography, the
upward vertical stem on some lowercase letters, such as h and b, that
extends above the x-height is the ascender. The height of the ascenders
is an identifying characteristic of many typefaces.
7) Baseline
The invisible line where all characters sit. Definition: In typography,
the baseline is the imaginary line upon which a line of text rests. In
most typefaces, the descenders on characters such as g or p extend down
below the baseline while curved letters such as c or o extend
ever-so-slightly below the baseline.
8) Bar
The horizontal stroke in letters. Also referred to as Crossbar.
Definition: The (usually) horizontal stroke across the middle of
uppercase A and H is a bar. The horizontal or sloping stroke enclosing
the bottom of the eye of an e is also a bar.
9) Ball Terminal
In typography, the terminal is a type of curve. Many sources consider a
terminal to be just the end (straight or curved) of any stroke that
doesn’t include a serif (which can include serif fonts, such as the
little stroke at the end of “n” as shown in the illustration). Some
curved bits of tails, links, ears, and loops are considered terminals
using the broader definition (see the Microsoft Typography site for
further explanation).
