Al Rassam Arabic Typing Software • Trending
Arabic calligraphy sits on a horizontal baseline. Use the vertical offset tool to adjust decorative letters that should drop below the line (like the tail of the Ya ).
Among the pantheon of Arabic software solutions, one name stands out for both purists and professionals: . al rassam arabic typing software
To make it look professional, you must insert tags. For example, to stretch the letter Meem (م), you would type [+tm] before the letter. To create a long horizontal line ( Madd ), you use the [k] tag for Kashida. Arabic calligraphy sits on a horizontal baseline
Developed in the early 2000s and refined over two decades, Al Rassam became the industry standard for . It allows users to type in over 30 distinct Arabic calligraphic styles, ranging from the rigid angularity of Kufi to the flowing curves of Diwani and the bold structure of Thuluth . Key Features That Set Al Rassam Apart Why would a professional choose Al Rassam over Adobe InDesign or Microsoft Office? The answer lies in a suite of specialized features that no generic software currently offers. 1. The "Tag" System (The Heart of the Software) The most revolutionary feature of Al Rassam is its Tag System . In traditional Arabic calligraphy, letters change shape based on their position. Al Rassam allows users to insert "tags" (shortcodes) directly into the text stream to alter a letter's shape, size, or connection. To make it look professional, you must insert tags
Open a new document. From the dropdown font menu, select a style. For beginners, start with "Al Rassam Naskh 1" – it is the easiest to read.
Named after the Arabic word for "The Drawer" or "The Designer," Al Rassam is not your standard word processor. It is a specialized typesetting engine designed to replicate the fluidity, geometry, and elegance of hand-drawn Arabic calligraphy. Whether you are a graphic designer, a student of Islamic art, or a publisher of religious texts, understanding Al Rassam is essential for producing professional-grade Arabic typography. At its core, Al Rassam is a Unicode-based Arabic typography and calligraphy software. Unlike Microsoft Word or basic text editors that treat Arabic as a left-to-right afterthought, Al Rassam was built from the ground up for the unique characteristics of the Arabic script: ligatures, contextual shaping, and kashida (character stretching).
Ensure you are running a Windows environment (the software is notoriously difficult on Mac/Wine emulators). Install from the official CD or authorized digital distributor.