For today’s blog post, Poland-based TPK reader Szymon provided me with a list of Polish words to write out. He was puzzled by how to write the diacritics and letter combinations that don’t appear in English! So, I decided to make a video of me writing each word on the list to show you how…
Today, I decided to take on a (friendly) challenge from a Polish reader: write diacritics in calligraphy. This reader was kind enough to provide me with a list of words featuring diacritics and/or difficult letter combinations! Initially, I planned to write words and show you the photos. Then, I realized that it’s probably more helpful for you to see me writing them out to so you can get a peek into my thought process!
In case you didn’t know: A “diacritic” is a little symbol that lets you know a letter needs to be pronounced differently than its plain counterpart. Examples include: “ñ”, “á”, “ü”, etc.!
“Czerń” is Polish for “blackness”. This was a fairly easy one to take on!
Calligraphy style: Kaitlin | Ink: Bleed Proof White | Cardstock: Cards & Pockets
“Przynajmniej” is Polish for “at least”. I love the balance in this word because there are so many descenders (strokes that extend down)! You’ve also got to appreciate any word that connects an “m” and an “n”.
Calligraphy style: Amy | Ink: Sumi | Paper: 32# Laserjet
“Łódź” is Polish for “boat”. The “ł” does trip me up a bit because it’s difficult not to make it look like a “t”!
Calligraphy style: Janet | Ink: Bleed Proof White | Cardstock: Cards & Pockets
“Przypadek” is Polish for “coincidence”. I like writing this one out because of the cluster of descenders in the middle of the word!
Calligraphy style: Kaitlin | Ink: Bleed Proof White | Cardstock: Cards & Pockets
“Żółć” is Polish for “bile”. Szymon pointed out that this word is pure diacritics!
Calligraphy style: Janet | Ink: Sumi | Paper: 32# Laserjet
“Jaźń” is Polish for “consciousness”. This one was pretty easy because my husband has the same accent in his name (“Hernán”); it just appears above different letters here!
Calligraphy style: Amy | Ink: Bleed Proof White | Cardstock: Cards & Pockets
“Děkuji” is Czech for “thank you”. I received a request to write out this word from a Czech reader last year, and I decided it would fit well in this list!
Calligraphy style: Amy | Ink: Bleed Proof White | Cardstock: Cards & Pockets
“Šťastný” is Czech for “happy”. This one is a bit tough because of the “v” above the “S”. You’ve got to make sure you have enough room at the top of the “S” to put that little “v” there! The apostrophe after the “t” is tough, too. Next time I write it, I’ll put much less distance between the “t” and the “a”!
Calligraphy style: Janet | Ink: Sumi | Paper: 32# Laserjet
The majority of TPK readers don’t speak Polish, Czech, or other languages with diacritics or letter combinations that don’t pop up in English. Still, you never know when you’ll run into a name or a foreign address that gives you a challenge! That’s when I hope this article (and these videos) will come in handy.
Thanks very much for reading — and, today, watching — TPK, and have a wspaniale* rest of the day!
Warmly,
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