How to Create a Custom Shavian Font with FontForge

ShawAlphabet.com is the ultimate hub for anyone fascinated by phonetic literacy, and this guide will walk you through creating a custom Shavian font with the free, open‑source tool FontForge. From the history of the alphabet to the step‑by‑step workflow, you’ll learn how to design, export, and use a Shavian typeface that matches the exact characters you need.

What is the Shavian Alphabet and Why Was It Created?

Shavian, formally the Shaw alphabet, is a phonetic alphabet devised by George Bernard Shaw in 1908 to replace English spelling with a one‑to‑one correspondence between sounds and symbols. Shaw envisioned a system that would eliminate the irregularities of conventional orthography, making reading and spelling easier for learners and more transparent for native speakers.

The alphabet contains 48 characters: 24 consonants, 12 vowels, and 12 ligatures that combine two consonants into a single glyph. It covers the phonemic inventory of most English dialects, from /p/ to /θ/ to /ʒ/.

Visual Example: English vs. Shavian

How It Works: Phonetic Spelling and the 48 Letters

Unlike the Latin alphabet, each Shavian letter corresponds to a single phoneme. Below is a concise mapping of the consonants and vowels, including the ligature range U+10450–U+1047F.

Note: The ligatures (e.g., 𐑓𐑔 for /ŋr/) are encoded in the same Unicode block and can be typed or drawn just like single letters.

FontForge Workflow: Creating a Custom Shavian Font

1. Download and Install FontForge – get the latest version from the official site for Windows, macOS, or Linux.
2. Set Up a New Font – choose ‘New font’ and select ‘Unicode’ as the encoding. In the ‘Set up font’ dialog, set the ‘Unicode range’ to U+10450–U+1047F to cover all Shavian characters.
3. Import Glyphs – use ShawAlphabet.com’s ‘Copy Glyph’ button to copy each Shavian character, then paste into the corresponding slot in FontForge. You can also use the ‘Import’ feature to bring in SVG outlines if you have them.
4. Adjust Metrics and Kerning – ensure each glyph has a consistent side‑bearing. Use the ‘Metrics’ window to tweak advance widths and the ‘Metrics’ > ‘Auto‑kern’ tool for ligature pairs.
5. Add Font Information – under ‘Font Info’ fill in the name (e.g., ‘Shaw‑Font’), copyright, and version. Set the ‘OS/2’ table flags to mark the font as a phonetic script.
6. Generate the Font – choose ‘Generate Fonts’ and select TTF, OTF, or WOFF. FontForge will create a Unicode‑compliant file that can be installed on any system.

After generation, test the font in a text editor that supports Unicode. Use ShawAlphabet.com’s online converter to type a sentence in Latin letters and copy the Shavian output to confirm that the glyphs display correctly.

Common English Words in Shavian

• book – 𐑑𐑕𐑵
• friend – 𐑙𐑕𐑥𐑕
• language – 𐑁𐑓𐑱𐑗𐑰𐑚𐑲𐑛
• history – 𐑘𐑚𐑕𐑕𐑚𐑰𐑳𐑙
• education – 𐑛𐑵𐑟𐑕𐑘𐑶𐑢𐑕
• computer – 𐑏𐑕𐑑𐑠𐑘𐑦𐑒
• music – 𐑞𐑗𐑱𐑕
• science – 𐑕𐑛𐑕𐑇𐑿
• water – 𐑚𐑙𐑔
• light – 𐑕𐑌𐑟

Notice how each letter maps directly to a single sound, eliminating silent letters and spelling irregularities.

Accent and Dialect Notes

Shavian was designed to represent the ‘International English’ phoneme set, which is largely shared across British, American, Australian, and Indian varieties. Because the alphabet focuses on phonemes rather than orthographic conventions, a single Shavian spelling works for most accents. Minor variations, such as the /ɪ/ vs. /i/ distinction in Received Pronunciation, are handled by context or diacritics that can be added later.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Confusing 𐑇 (/v/) with 𐑆 (/f/).
• Using the Latin letter V instead of the Shavian 𐑇.
• Forgetting to type ligatures like 𐑓𐑔 (/ŋr/) when the combination occurs.
• Typing /θ/ as 𐑈 instead of 𐑊 (/s/).
• Assuming the letter 𐑚 (/b/) is the same as the Latin ‘b’ in all contexts – be mindful of the Unicode code point.

Practical Exercise

Convert the sentence: ‘The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.’ into Shavian. Write each word on a separate line.

Answer Key:

1. 𐑔𐑚𐑱𐑙
2. 𐑑𐑕𐑕𐑤𐑑𐑕
3. 𐑚𐑑𐑝𐑛𐑕
4. 𐑚𐑣𐑑𐑕
5. 𐑓𐑻𐑰𐑖
6. 𐑕𐑑𐑕𐑗𐑕
7. 𐑚𐑘𐑕
8. 𐑔𐑚𐑱𐑙
9. 𐑤𐑱𐑟𐑆𐑟
10. 𐑛𐑕𐑚

Use ShawAlphabet.com’s online converter to verify your results.

Limitations and Controversies

Despite its elegance, Shavian never achieved mainstream adoption. Critics argue that learning a new script is a barrier, and that the Latin alphabet’s ubiquity outweighs the benefits of phonetic consistency. Moreover, some dialects contain sounds not represented in the original 48‑letter set, requiring additional diacritics or letters that were not part of Shaw’s design.

Historical Context and George Bernard Shaw’s Role

George Bernard Shaw, the Irish‑born playwright, published the Shavian alphabet in 1908 in his play ‘Androcles and the Lion’ as a practical experiment in spelling reform. The 48 characters were printed in the play’s typeset and later licensed to the Shaw Alphabet Society. Shaw viewed the alphabet as a tool for education, literacy, and social equality.

Today, ShawAlphabet.com preserves the original design and provides modern tools—converters, keyboards, and font generators—to keep Shaw’s vision alive.