Typographical

Typographical is the adjective relating to typography, the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable, and visually appealing. It covers typeface selection, letter spacing, line length, line height, alignment, and the overall composition of text on a page or screen. The term derives from typography, from Greek typographia, combining typos "impression" and graphia "writing".

Historically, typographic practice arose with movable type in the 15th century and evolved through metal type and mechanical printing. In the digital era, typography expanded to screen text, web fonts, and responsive layouts, with technologies such as OpenType, font hinting, and advanced kerning and ligatures.

Key concepts include the distinction between typeface and font, and measurements such as points, leading (line spacing), and tracking (letterspacing). Other elements are kerning, ligatures, hyphenation, alignment, margins, measure, and grid systems that organize text blocks. Typography also addresses accessibility and readability across languages and devices, requiring careful contrast, whitespace, and typographic hierarchy.

Usage and context: typographical decisions influence how information is perceived in publishing, marketing, web design, and user interfaces. Tools and standards in typography guide consistency, while style guides and typography conventions vary by language and medium. The phrase typographical error is commonly used for misprints, though editors may prefer terms like typo or misprint.

Related concepts include typography, typeface, font, and kerning.