''Thuluth'' (, ' or , '; , ''Sols''; Turkish: ''Sülüs'', from ' "one-third") is an

Arabic script The Arabic script is the writing system used for Arabic (Arabic alphabet) and several other languages of Asia and Africa. It is the second-most widely used alphabetic writing system in the world (after the Latin script), the second-most widel ...

variety of

Islamic calligraphy Islamic calligraphy is the artistic practice of penmanship and calligraphy, in the languages which use Arabic alphabet or the Arabic script#Additional letters used in other languages, alphabets derived from it. It is a highly stylized and struc ...

. The straight angular forms of

Kufic The Kufic script () is a style of Arabic script, that gained prominence early on as a preferred script for Quran transcription and architectural decoration, and it has since become a reference and an archetype for a number of other Arabic scripts ...

were replaced in the new script by curved and oblique lines. In ''Thuluth'', one-third of each letter slopes, from which the name (meaning "a third" in Arabic) comes. An alternative theory to the meaning is that the smallest width of the letter is one third of its widest part. It is an elegant,

cursive Cursive (also known as joined-up writing) is any style of penmanship in which characters are written joined in a flowing manner, generally for the purpose of making writing faster, in contrast to block letters. It varies in functionality and m ...

script, used in medieval times on

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

decorations. Various calligraphic styles evolved from ''Thuluth'' through slight changes of form.

History

The greatest contributions to the evolution of the ''Thuluth'' script occurred in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

in three successive steps that Ottoman

art historians The history of art focuses on objects made by humans for any number of spiritual, narrative, philosophical, symbolic, conceptual, documentary, decorative, and even functional and other purposes, but with a primary emphasis on its aesthetics ...

call "calligraphical revolutions": *The first revolution occurred in the 15th century and was initiated by the master calligrapher Sheikh Hamdullah. *The second revolution resulted from the work of the Ottoman calligrapher Hâfız Osman in the 17th century. Ali, Wijdan.
From the Literal to the Spiritual: The Development of Prophet Muhammad's Portrayal from 13th Century Ilkhanid Miniatures to 17th Century Ottoman Art
". In ''Proceedings of the 11th International Congress of Turkish Art'', eds. M. Kiel, N. Landman, and H. Theunissen. No. 7, 1–24. Utrecht, The Netherlands, August 23–28, 1999, p. 7 *Finally, in the late 19th century, Mehmed Şevkî Efendi gave the script the distinctive shape it has today.

Artists

The best known artist to write the ''Thuluth'' script at its zenith is said to be Mustafa Râkım Efendi (1757–1826), a painter who set a standard in Ottoman calligraphy which many believe has not been surpassed to this day.Journal of Ottoman Calligraphy :: RAKIM: “Mustafa Rakim” (1757 - 1826) :: April :: 2006

Usage

''Thuluth'' is mainly used to write the headings of

sura A ''surah'' (; ; ) is an Arabic word meaning 'chapter' in the Quran. There are 114 ''suwar'' in the Quran, each divided into verses (). The ''suwar'' are of unequal length; the shortest ''surah'' ( al-Kawthar) has only three verses, while the ...

hs,

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

ic chapters, and also for Arabic writings in mosques. Some of the oldest copies of the Qur'an were written entirely in ''Thuluth''. Later copies were written in a combination of ''Thuluth'' and either Naskh or

Muhaqqaq Muhaqqaq is one of the main six types of Islamic calligraphy, calligraphic script in Arabic.John F. A. Sawyer, J. M. Y. Simpson, R. E. Asher (eds.), ''Concise Encyclopedia of Language and Religion'', Elsevier, New York 2001, , p. 253. The Arabic la ...

. After the 15th century Naskh came to be used exclusively. The script is used in the flags of

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

and

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, where the text, ''Shahada al

Tawhid ''Tawhid'' () is the concept of monotheism in Islam, it is the religion's central and single most important concept upon which a Muslim's entire religious adherence rests. It unequivocally holds that God is indivisibly one (''ahad'') and s ...

'', is written in ''Thuluth''.

Style

An important aspect of ''Thuluth'' is the use of ''

harakat The Arabic script has numerous diacritics, which include consonant pointing known as (, ), and supplementary diacritics known as (, ). The latter include the vowel marks termed (, ; , ', ). The Arabic script is a modified abjad, where all ...

'' (''"hareke"'' in Turkish) to represent vowel sounds and of certain other stylistic marks to beautify the script. The rules governing the former are similar to the rules for any Arabic script. The stylistic marks have their own rules regarding placement and grouping which allow for great creativity as to shape and orientation. For example, one grouping technique is to separate the marks written below letters from those written above.

Scripts developed from ''Thuluth''

Since its creation, ''Thuluth'' has given rise to a variety of scripts used in calligraphy and over time has allowed numerous modifications. ''Jeli'' ''Thuluth'' was developed for use in large panels, such as those on tombstones. The ''

'' script was developed by widening the horizontal sections of the letters in ''Thuluth''. The ''Naskh'' script introduced a number of modifications resulting in smaller size and greater delicacy. '' Tawqi'' is a smaller version of Thuluth. '' Ruq'ah'' was probably derived from ''Thuluth'' and Naskh

Gallery

File:Thuluth - Yaqut al-Mustasimi.jpg, Line in thuluth written by

Yaqut al-Musta'simi Yaqut al-Musta'simi (Arabic: ياقوت المستعصمي) (died 1298) was a well-known Calligraphy, calligrapher and secretary of the Al-Musta'sim, last Abbasid caliph. Life and work He was probably of Pontic Greeks, Greek origin in Amaseia ...

(d. 1298).

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

. File:محراب اولجایتو.jpg,

Mihrab ''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall". ...

in the winter prayer hall of the Jameh Mosque of Isfahan with inscription in carved

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

in thuluth designed by Haydar (d. 1325/1326) File:Khalili Collection Islamic Art gls 0172.4.jpg,

Mamluk Mamluk or Mamaluk (; (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural); translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave") were non-Arab, ethnically diverse (mostly Turkic, Caucasian, Eastern and Southeastern European) enslaved mercenaries, slave-so ...

enamelled flask. Its shoulder bears a wide band with a dedication to an unnamed sultan in thuluth. Egypt or Syria, first half of the 14th century. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art. File:Illuminated opening of the Mamluk Qur'an (National Library of Egypt Masahif Rasid 14, ff.1b-2a).jpg, Opening pages from the Mamluk Qur'an with first verse of

Al-Fatiha Al-Fatiha () is the first chapter () of the Quran. It consists of seven verses (') which consist of a prayer for guidance and mercy. Al-Fatiha is recited in Muslim obligatory and voluntary prayers, known as ''salah''. The primary literal mea ...

in monumental thuluth script. Egypt, late 1350s. Egyptian National Library. File:Album leaf (CBL T 426, f.1a).jpg, Album leaf from

muraqqa A Muraqqa ( , ) is an album in book form containing Islamic miniature paintings and specimens of Islamic calligraphy, normally from several different sources, and perhaps other matter. The album was popular among collectors in the Islami ...

by Sheikh Hamdullah in thuluth (upper panel) and naskh script.

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, between 1500–1520 (illumination from 18th century).

Chester Beatty Library The Chester Beatty Library, now known as the Chester Beatty, is a museum and library in Dublin. It was established in Ireland in 1953, to house the collections of mining magnate, Sir Alfred Chester Beatty. The present museum, on the grounds of ...

. File:Southern Portal - Taj Mahal - Agra 2014-05-14 3793.JPG, Inscription in thuluth at the Southern Portal of

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal ( ; ; ) is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal Empire, Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his belo ...

, designed by Amanat Khan Shirazi.

Agra Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...

, between 1631–1638. File:Album leaf from a Muraqqa by Hafiz Osman (MIK I. 1985.11.9).jpg, Album leaf from

by Hâfiz Osman in thuluth (upper panel) and naskh script. Istanbul, 1693/1694. Museum of Islamic Art, Berlin. File:Signed Mustafa Rakım - Levha (calligraphic inscription) - Google Art Project.jpg, Levha (calligraphic inscription) in jeli thuluth by Mustafa Râkim. Istanbul, between 1809 –1826. Sakıp Sabancı Museum.

References

External links

Thuluth Script
{{Arabic language Arabic calligraphy Islamic calligraphy