Complex text layout

<p>Complex text layout (CTL) or complex text rendering is the <a href="/facts/Typesetting/CsKmfY0t">typesetting</a> of <a href="/facts/Writing_system/ABG251A0">writing systems</a> in which the shape or positioning of a <a href="/facts/Grapheme/uzXGIsAr">grapheme</a> depends on its relation to other graphemes. The term is used in the field of software <a href="/facts/Internationalization_and_localization/IGkl9VBM">internationalization</a>, where each grapheme is a <a href="/facts/Character_(computing)/X2zKLFFB">character</a>.
</p><p>Scripts which require CTL for proper display may be known as complex scripts. Examples include the <a href="/facts/Arabic_alphabet/hCA1a0xq">Arabic alphabet</a> and scripts of the <a href="/facts/Brahmic_scripts/mwHJWt6d">Brahmic family</a>, such as <a href="/facts/Devanagari/dQvQ3Ufs">Devanagari</a>, <a href="/facts/Khmer_script/al76EeT6">Khmer script</a> or the <a href="/facts/Thai_alphabet/uxnpJWg9">Thai alphabet</a>. Many scripts do not require CTL. For instance, the <a href="/facts/Latin_alphabet/pqWVHpBz">Latin alphabet</a> or <a href="/facts/Chinese_character/5pn1PFvj">Chinese characters</a> can be typeset by simply displaying each character one after another in straight rows or columns. However, even these scripts have alternate forms or optional features (such as <a href="/facts/Cursive/sbW2bKYq">cursive</a> writing) which require CTL to produce on computers.
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Complex text layout open-in-new

Complex text layout