Selling of stolen phones has become rampant in China. (Photo : Getty Images)
New Qomolangma Tibetan fonts released by the China Tibetology Research Center have just given more mainstream options for Tibetans who want to buy a smartphone that can display their language, as reported by China Daily.
Tibetan-speaking users are now able to download fonts from the Internet and personalize their smartphones, having 17 different typefaces to choose from. Until recently, they only had Uchen, the classic block-style Tibetan script.
In addition to smartphone users, computer users and publishing houses have quickly adopted the fonts.
Thanks to the technical advances achieved by Tibetan researchers over the last eight years, digital Tibetan has become stylish, said Norgye, director of the Information Center of the Minzu Publishing House that released the new fonts in November.
"It's like having only one set of clothing for a long time. Suddenly, you can dress up and pick whatever you want from the closet for different occasions. Such change is exhilarating to end users," said Norgye.
The Qomalangma fonts display the essence of Tibetan lettering design, with at least eight of the fonts being based on handwriting of famous Tibetan calligraphers.
There were several difficulties the developers had to overcome, especially because the rules regarding handwritten Tibetan vary, according to Lu Yajun of the Tibetology Institute at the Northwest University for Nationalities. For example, the stroke of one vowel can extend over several words, something very challenging for digital media, added Lu.
"Compared with the previous stiff Tibetan fonts available, the new Qomolangma fonts are more flexible. With the stretched strokes, they often remind me of shadowboxing," said Lu.
Due to public demand for stylish Tibetan fonts available digitally, the research center launched the state-funded project back in 2007.
According to Tashi Tsering, a researcher who led the project, an expert panel was organized to determine the style of each font, allowing the Qomolangma fonts to meet the aesthetic preferences of Tibetans across different regions.
The Qomolangma fonts also had to meet the challenge of displaying a strong historical flavor, while meeting the different needs of publishing houses.
"When I first saw Chinese characters pop up on the screen, I started to dream big. I wished one day Tibetan could also be typed and I thought I could be the one to stand up and give it a try," said Tashi Tsering.
