Converting between old Germanic Print and Cursive in One Step
Stephen P. Morse, San Francisco



Keyboard Style:     Print Cursive    
Character Case: Upper Case     Lower Case
Font/Script: Fraktur Kurrent     Suetterlin    

% designates "s" at the end of a word
ß is equivalent to ss




Fraktur is a gothic typeface created at the end of the 15th century at the direction of Emperor Maximilian and used well into the 20th century. Its use declined after World War I, but was revived briefly during the Third Reich. Ironically, Hitler terminated its use in 1941 because he thought it looked "un-German" and was "of Jewish origin".

Kurrent (Kurrentschrift) is the cursive version of Fraktur, used from the beginning of the 16th century into the early 20th century. The "modern" standardized form was established by the end of the 18th century.

Suetterlin (Sütterlinschrift) was devised by Ludwig Sütterlin as an easier script to write than Kurrent. It was standard in Prussian schools by 1915, and in virtually all German schools by 1934.

References: Fractur  Kurrent  Suetterlin
Abbreviated descriptions were provided by Ted Russell
Cursive letters shown here come from the kurrentshrift.net website

© Stephen P. Morse, 2014