Fustat

Fustat is a free Arabic and Latin variable font inspired by manuscript Kufi. Mohamed Gaber designed the Arabic, Laura Garcia Mut the Latin, and Khaled Hosny handled font engineering.

Try both headings and numeric tables

The manuscript reference gives the Arabic a different starting point from a purely geometric grid. Use a short editorial heading to judge its voice, followed by a paragraph to assess texture. The matching Latin was designed for the same family.

The supplied font contains OpenType features for tabular digits and fractions, among other options. A price list or report is a useful test: enable tabular numbers in a compatible application and check that columns align. Feature availability does not mean the software turns it on automatically. Keep a PDF export in the test, especially when numbers, units and Arabic labels appear on the same line.

Variable files and preview weights

The ZIP contains 1 original variable TTF file, version 1.010. Axis ranges, with defaults in parentheses: wght 200–800 (400). The preview supplies 7 static styles, covering weights 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800. Compatible software can select intermediate weights from the original file.

The documented coverage here is Arabic and Latin. Test actual words, vowel marks and mixed-direction lines in the application you will use. A font file cannot determine paragraph direction or replace a shaping engine.

For a separate study of horizontal expansion, compare Readex Pro’s HEXP axis on the same paragraph. Use its original variable file, since the preview fixes expansion at zero; no reading benefit is guaranteed.

License and comparison

SIL Open Font License 1.1 permits personal and commercial use, embedding and redistribution under its terms. The ZIP includes the exact license and the original files. Keep the license when redistributing the font; selling the font by itself is prohibited.

Compare Noto Kufi Arabic for another Kufi headline, and Amiri for a Naskh text block below the title. Browse Kufi Arabic fonts and Arabic and Latin design. Prepare a sample with the Arabic keyboard and the Arabic font selection guide. See the official source at the supplied revision.