Migrating from ScriptSource

As announced on ScriptSource, we will be closing down the ScriptSource website at the end of September. For 15 years ScriptSource has been a rich source of information on the scripts and writing systems of the world, and has drawn together experts from around the globe. Although it is going away, much of the content from ScriptSource has been, or is in the process of being, migrated to this site.

Note: The process of migrating content from ScriptSource to this site is not yet complete and will continue over the next few months.

So where do I find…

The easiest way to find resources is to use the Search bar at the top of every page.

For information on specific scripts, start with the Scripts Index. Each script page links to a list of languages/writing systems that use the script, to Unicode Status information and proposals, and to a wide range of resources on this site and elsewhere.

For language information, see the links on the Languages page.

For articles on technical topics related to writing systems support, see the Topics listed in the sidebar or menu. Click on the Topic heading to show a list of the main articles in that topic. A Related Resources page in each Topic links to a more detailed list of technical articles here and on other sites.

For brief definitions of writing system or computing terminology, see the Glossary.

Why is ScriptSource being retired?

The underlying technical framework behind ScriptSource has held up well but is showing its age. It would require considerable effort to maintain it for another 15 years or to rebuild it using more modern technologies. The decision was made to retire ScriptSource and migrate as much content as possible to this site. This also allows us to review and update the content as we migrate it, to focus more on openly licensed content, and improve how the content is presented.

How is this site different from ScriptSource?

This site uses a completely different set of technologies that enable it to be faster, more responsive, and more reliable. It also requires much less effort to keep it secure and working well.

Although much of the information on ScriptSource is being migrated to this site, it may appear a bit differently. Some entries have not been migrated because they were outdated, no longer relevant, or not openly licensed. Some of the content on ScriptSource was used with special permission of the copyright holders, but not openly licensed for anyone else to use. We wanted to remove those restrictions.

Other notable improvements over ScriptSource include:

• Script pages are simplified, with easier access to important information and links to resources.
• Technical information on key topics is more tightly integrated with script information.
• Content has been reviewed and updated to remove outdated and no longer relevant material.
• Some articles (entries on ScriptSource) have also been expanded with more content and improved images.
• Images and text drawn from other sites have been replaced in many cases by links to their original sources.
• All the text and image content, and the infrastructure itself, is openly licensed. The only exceptions are certain datasets from Unicode and the Ethnologue—see Acknowledgements.
• More priority is given to listing free and open resources.

There are some aspects of ScriptSource that have not been applied to this site:

• Individual Unicode characters and blocks do not have their own pages. Instead, information about Unicode characters and blocks is provided through the Unicode Status pages for each script, and links are provided to the Unicode code charts and other resources.
• Individual languages and writing systems do not have their own pages. Most language data can be found through the links on the Languages page. We’re still considering how we might provide more detailed information on individual locales and writing systems in the future.
• We haven’t yet decided how we might migrate phoneme and grapheme data to this site or to some other resource. We hope to make this information available in some form, but it may not be in the same format as it was on ScriptSource.

Contact us

If you have questions or concerns about our intention to retire ScriptSource, or about the migration of content to this site, please contact us. We also welcome your suggestions for improving this site and for additional content you would like to see here.