Merovingian script was a
medieval script so called because it was developed in
France during the
Merovingian dynasty. It was used in the 7th and 8th centuries before the
Carolingian dynasty and the development of
Carolingian minuscule.
There were four major centres of Merovingian script the monasteries of Luxeuil, Laon, Corbie, and Chelles. Each script developed from uncial, half-uncial, and the Merovingian charter scripts.
The Luxeuil type uses distinctive long, slim capital letters as a display script. These capitals have wedge-shaped finials, and the crossbar of A resembles a small letter v while that of H is a wavy line. The letter O is often written as a diamond shape, with a smaller o written inside. In the Luxeuil minuscule script, the letter a resembles two letter cs ("cc"); b often has an open bow, and an arm connecting it to the following letter. Because of these features the Luxeuil type is sometimes called "a-b type." The letter d can have either a vertical ascender or an ascender slanted to the left; i is often very tall, resembling l; n can be written with an uncial form (similar to a capital N); o is often oval-shaped and has a line connecting it to the next letter; and t has a loop extending to the left of its top stroke. The letter t is also used in numerous ligatures where it has many other forms. The letters e and r are also quite often found in ligature.
The Laon type has thicker display capitals than the Luxeuil type. Capital initial letters are often decorated with animals, and there are many ligatures with the letter i. Like Visigothic script, there are two different ti ligatures, representing two different sounds ("hard" and "soft"). The letters d and q often have open bows. The letter a is unique, resembling two sharp points ("<<"), and the letter z, uncommon in Latin, is nevertheless very distinctive in the Laon type, with a flourish projecting upwards to the left, above the line. Because of these features, Laon type is sometimes called "a-z type."
