The first traces of writing have been found in Mesopotamia between 3400 and 3300 BC, in the ruins
of temples in the city of Uruk (present-day Iraq). This is where the Sumerians used sharpened reeds
to carve signs into clay. They used writing to immortalize their history, much like the hero depicted
in the Epic of Gilgamesh, who seeks the secret of eternal life.
The Sumerians achieved a form of eternity by inscribing their poetic history in a land that was later
known as SAWĀD (7th–12th centuries). In Arabic, sawād means “blackness,”
referring to the dark color of the fertile soil of southern Mesopotamia. The term is also used in
Arabic and Persian calligraphy and typography to refer to the blackness of text in contrast to the
whiteness of the page, or its type color. In Persian, sawād is used primarily in relation to
literacy and knowledge, but it also has other meanings, including writing ink, text, or a copy.
SAWĀD aims to be a fertile land for Arabic type. It seeks to support critical research and the
transmission of knowledge in the fields of Arabic typography and type design. By exploring the
possibilities of the web and digital media, SAWĀD also seeks to develop and support applied and
experimental tools adapted to the morphology of the Arabic script.
Concept, design and development:
Sina Fakour.