Aref Ruqaa — Free Arabic Google Font
Aref Ruqaa aims to capture the classical Ruq'ah calligraphic tradition — the fast, simplified handwriting style most native Arabic speakers actually use day to day — in a set typeface. Khaled Hosny paired it with a Latin design adapted from AMS Euler, respaced for ordinary reading rather than mathematics.
About Aref Ruqaa
Aref Ruqaa aims to capture the classical Ruq'ah calligraphic style, the quick everyday hand of Arabic writing. Google Fonts credits Abdullah Aref, Khaled Hosny and Hermann Zapf, and the project is led by Hosny in Cairo; it was added in 2016. Its Latin is based on AMS Euler, Hermann Zapf's typeface for mathematics, respaced for ordinary text.
Designers: Abdullah Aref, Khaled Hosny, Hermann Zapf
Best used for
- Personal, handwritten-feel design
- Informal or friendly brand voices
- Everyday Arabic-script text
How Aref Ruqaa compares
Compared with Rakkas, which turns Ruq'ah into loud poster lettering, Aref Ruqaa stays close to how the script is actually written by hand. Next to a Naskh text face like Amiri, it is shorter, quicker and more informal: the difference between handwriting and a printed book. Choose it when the text should look written by a person rather than printed or painted on a poster.
Tips for using Aref Ruqaa
Use Aref Ruqaa for handwritten-feeling titles, greetings, quotations and personal stationery. Regular and Bold are available. For fully vocalised text, a Naskh font such as Amiri is the safer choice. Its Euler-based Latin has a calligraphic feel of its own, so mixed Arabic and English headings look natural.
Arabic character preview
ا ب ت ث ج ح خ د ذ ر ز س ش ص ض ط ظ ع غ ف ق ك ل م ن ه و ي
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم — مرحبا بالعالم — ٠١٢٣٤٥٦٧٨٩
Download Aref Ruqaa
Using Aref Ruqaa on the web
Load it from the Google Fonts CDN:
<link href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Aref+Ruqaa:wght@400;700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">Then reference it in your CSS:
font-family: "Aref Ruqaa", sans-serif;License
Licensed under the SIL Open Font License — free for personal and commercial use. What the OFL allows →