Utopian alphabet

St. Thomas More (1478-1535), a lawyer, writer, scholar, statesman, diplomat, political theorist and patron of the arts invented the Utopian alphabet during the 16th century.

This alphabet appears in his bookUtopia, which was written in Latin and was published in 1516. The name Utopia is a pun meaning both the "good place" and "no place". The book is narrated by a traveller called Raphael Hythloday, who praises all aspects of life of the fictional country of Utopia. Hythloday's comments can be seen as an indirect critique of contemporary English society.

The Utopian alphabet (VTOPIENSIVM ALPHABETVM)

The Utopian alphabet

Sample text

Sample text in the Utopian alphabet

Transliteration

Vtopos ha Boccas peula chama polta chamaan. Bargol he maglomi baccan forna gymnoſophon. Agrama gymnoſophon labarem bacha bodamilomin. Voluala barchin heman la lauoluola dramme pagloni.
Source:http://www.ub.uni-bielefeld.de/diglib/more/utopia/ (page 13)

Links

Utopia - an online English translation
http://www.d-holliday.com/tmore/utopia.htm

Utopia (Book 1) in Latin with notes in German
http://www.ub.uni-bielefeld.de/diglib/more/utopia/

Free Utopia font
http://sites.google.com/site/nihilistorguk/

Further information about Thomas More
http://www.apostles.com/thomasmore.html
http://www.d-holliday.com/tmore/

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