Yale University Library Research Guides: Know Before You Go: Library Resources for Students Doing Research Abroad: Palaeography

Palaeography

Palaeography (or Paleography) is the study and analysis of handwriting in order to read old texts with accuracy and fluency. It focuses on studying letter forms and conventions used, such as abbreviations. In addition, palaeography also involves dating manuscripts and identifying the location of, called ‘localizing’, the writing used.

Tutorials and Resources

Resources for Arabic script palaeography (U of Michigan)
A guide to Arabic script paleography.
Course in Islamic paleography (U of Leiden)
Online course.
Islamic Manuscript Association
List of courses offered by the Association, many offered in the UK, Lebanon, and Qatar.
Virtual Hill Museum & Manuscript Library (VHMML) School
Learn the basics of Arabic-, Latin-, and Syriac-script palaeography online.

DigiPal
DigiPal is a new resource for the study of medieval handwriting, particularly that produced in England during the years 1000–1100, the time of Æthelred, Cnut and William the Conqueror. It is designed to allow you to see samples of handwriting from the period and to compare them with each other quickly and easily.
Ductus Handwriting and Bookmaking in the Middle Ages (Yale Use Only)
An internet-based digital program for teaching the basics of Latin Paleography--the study of ancient handwriting--and codicology--the study of the history of bookmaking
Early Modern Palaeography
Online tutorial.
English Handwriting, 1500-1700
Online tutorial.
English Handwriting, 1500-1700
for working with English manuscript sources between 1500 and 1700
English Script Tutorial (BYU)
How to Read 18th Century British-American Writing
Medieval Writing
An introduction to medieval manuscripts through the medium of the arcane art of paleography, or the history and decoding of the forms of handwriting
More resources for English palaeography
Palaeography: Reading Old Handwriting, 1500-1800. A Practical Online Tutorial
for documents written in English between 1500 and 1800

French Records Extraction – An Instructional Guide
French Renaissance Paleography
Over 100 carefully selected French manuscripts written between 1300 and 1700, with tools for deciphering them and learning about their social, cultural, and institutional settings.
Ménestrel Médiévistes sur le net: sources, travaux et références en ligne
Introduction to French Script Tutorial
This website offers guidance in the deciphering of documents written in archaic handwriting styles or alphabets.
Cours de paléographie - - Archive du cours d'Arisitum
For French documents to 1789.

German Handwriting: Sütterlin
for documents written using Sütterlin (taught from 1915 to 1941)
German Script Tutorial (BYU)
for learning to read documents written by hand and printed from the eighteenth to early twentieth century

Portal to Palaeography and Medieval Manuscript Studies (U College Cork)

Ductus Handwriting and Bookmaking in the Middle Ages (Yale Use Only)
An internet-based digital program for teaching the basics of Latin Paleography--the study of ancient handwriting--and codicology--the study of the history of bookmaking
Cappelli, Dizionario di Abbreviature
Latin Palaeography (UK National Archives)
for documents written in Latin between 1086 and 1500.
Latin Script Tutorial (BYU)

Basic Portuguese Paleography Tutorial (BYU)

Know Before You Go: Library Resources for Students Doing Research Abroad: Palaeography

Palaeography

Tutorials and Resources

Examples of what different handwritings can look like

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