Arabic Calligraphy

Islamic calligraphy (calligraphy in Arabic is Khatt ul-Yad خط اليد) is an aspect of Islamic art that has evolved alongside the religion of Islam and the Arabic language. Arabic calligraphy is associated with geometric Islamic art (arabesque) on the walls and ceilings of mosques as well as on the page. Contemporary artists in the Islamic world draw on the heritage of calligraphy to use calligraphic inscriptions or abstractions.

Ali bin Abi Tholib RA say :

اَلـْخَطُّ مَخْفِيٌّ فِي تَعْلِيْمِ اْلأُسْـتَاذِ ، وَقِوَامُـهُ فِي كَـثْرَةِ اْلمَشَقِ ، وَدَوَامُـهُ عَلى دِيْن اْلإِسْلاَمِ

Instead of recalling something related to the spoken word, calligraphy for Muslims is a visible expression of the highest art of all, the art of the spiritual world. Calligraphy has arguably become the most venerated form of Islamic art because it provides a link between the languages of the Muslims with the religion of Islam.

The holy book of Islam, al-Qur'an,

has played an important role in the development and evolution of the Arabic language, and by extension, calligraphy in the Arabic alphabet. Proverbs and passages from the Qur'an are still sources for Islamic calligraphy.

There was a strong parallel tradition to that of the Islamic, among Aramaic and Hebrew scholars, seen in such works as the Hebrew illuminated bibles of the 9th and 10th centuries. Islamic calligraphy, equally known as Arabic calligraphy, is the art of writing, and by extension, of bookmaking. This art has most often employed the Arabic script, throughout many languages. Calligraphy is especially revered among Islamic arts since it was the primary means for the preservation of the Qur'an. Throughout Islamic history, the work of calligraphers was collected and appreciated. Consideration of figurative art as idolatrous led to calligraphy and abstract figures becoming the main forms of artistic expression in Islamic cultures. Arabic, Persian and Ottoman Turkish calligraphy is associated with geometric Islamic art (the Arabesque) on the walls and ceilings of mosques as well as on the page. Contemporary artists in the Islamic world draw on the heritage of calligraphy to use calligraphic inscriptions or abstractions in their work.