#din typeface

DIN Type Superfamilies

In the 1930’s, the German Standards committee Deutsches Institut Normung (DIN) officially proposed DIN 1451 as the standard type of lettering to be used in the field of road traffic. 

The purpose of this standard was to lay down a style of lettering which is timeless and easily legible. Unfortunately, these early letters lacked elegance and were not properly designed for typographic applications. Ever since, several type foundries adopted the original designs for digital photocomposition. 

FF DIN : Tribute To A Typeface

The DIN type family, with its slightly severe profile and a regimented rigidity to it, is a widely popular one. At first glance, it might appear similar to fonts like Helvetica and Arial, but perhaps with a little less refinement and more personality, which lends itself well to design that wants to be minimalist but not entirely indistinct.

DIN has been around for over a hundred years, with an ancestor in a 1905 design known as IV 44, defined by the Royal Prussian Rail Administration. 

If you look at photos of what a pre-war German street looks like, you can immediately recognize the bold-yet-neutral lettering on the street signs. From there, FF DIN, the most commonly used modern variant, was reborn from DIN 1451 in 1995 by the FontFont Foundry, to bring that subtly German design into the realm of modern graphic design.