Some issues concerning an Arabic dictionary

Hyperboreus28 November 2007 · 02:56

Dear Fellow Typophiles,

In the middle of November I was commissioned to design and execute
a fresh Finnish–Arabic–Finnish Dictionary for general readers.
Since my knowledge of non-Latin scripts is restricted to classical Greek
– and some Russian – there are major difficulties to surmount.

(1) Technical issues
It is well known that the localized Adobe InDesign ME supports right-
to-left scripts, but are there any cunning methods of importing Arabic
to the standard version (i.e. Adobe InDesign CS2, English, Mac)?
(2) Aesthetical issues
The choosing of Arabic typeface seems somewhat outrageous. (e.g.
some kufic fonts seem appealing to me, but I doubt whether they
have any connection whatsoever with lexica...)
The Latin scripts of our book might be set with ‘Linotype Trajanus’ or
‘Brioso Pro’, which do possess certain calligraphic flavour.
(3) The lack of Arabic skills
Indeed, shall I have the temerity to accept this captivating commission?

Any suggestions or comments will be highly appriciated!

Sincerely,
P. L.

Saad D Abulhab28 November 2007 · 10:46

>>(1) Technical issues
It is well known that the localized Adobe InDesign ME supports right- to-left scripts, but are there any cunning methods of importing Arabic
to the standard version (i.e. Adobe InDesign CS2, English, Mac)?

Not really since shaping is only possible in ME.

>>(2) Aesthetical issues
The choosing of Arabic typeface seems somewhat outrageous. (e.g.
some kufic fonts seem appealing to me, but I doubt whether they
have any connection whatsoever with lexica...)
The Latin scripts of our book might be set with ‘Linotype Trajanus’ or
‘Brioso Pro’, which do possess certain calligraphic flavour.

Naskh is the typeface of choice for newspapers and textbook. But even within that you have varieties. Of course, I would be happy if you decide to choose my Arabetics Mehdi font family :)

>>(3) The lack of Arabic skills Indeed, shall I have the temerity to accept this captivating commission?

With some help from a local college student, yes you should.

Good luck. -Saad