Geneva (typeface) explained

Style:	Sans-serif
Classifications:	Grotesque sans-serif
Date:	1983
Creator:	Susan Kare
Foundry:	Apple Computer
Latin:	yes

Geneva is a neo-grotesque or "industrial" sans-serif typeface designed by Susan Kare for Apple Computer. It is one of the oldest fonts shipped with Macintosh operating systems. The original version was a bitmap font, but later versions were converted to TrueType when that technology became available on the Macintosh platform. Because this Macintosh font is not commonly available on other platforms, many users find Verdana, Microsoft Sans Serif or Arial to be an acceptable substitute.

Geneva was originally a redesigned version of the famous Linotype typeface Helvetica; the TrueType version of the font is somewhat different. Helvetica is named after the Latin name for Switzerland, home country of its original designer Max Miedinger; Geneva is Switzerland's second-largest city.

Unlike MS Sans Serif (formerly "Helv") as was used in Windows, the bitmap version of Geneva was not consistent in glyph shape with the outline version.

• In 9-, 10- and 12-point sizes, the lowercase i, j and l had serifs on the top, the lowercase y was parallel, the central vertex of the uppercase M was much higher, and the 3 had a flat top (like in Chicago), among other differences. The 14- and 18-point sizes retained these differences save for the y. The 24-point size was a straight copy of the outline form.^[1]
• The release of Mac OS 8.5 in 1998 replaced 18-point bitmap Geneva with a metrically adjusted copy of the outline form. In the smaller sizes, some of the above characters were redesigned to appear as they do in the outline font, while others such as the 3 and uppercase M remained unchanged. This revision of bitmap Geneva is still available on recent macOS releases wherever antialisaing can be disabled (e.g. the Terminal app).

Unusually for neo-grotesque faces, later versions of Geneva include a basic set of ligatures and the archaic long s and R rotunda as alternates.

A slightly modified version of Geneva, called Simple, was included in the Apple Newton operating system.

Osaka, a default Japanese gothic typeface for Mac OS, also derived from Geneva typeface.

References

• • Notes on 4 Apple Fonts – a description of the design of the TrueType versions of Chicago, New York, Geneva and Monaco.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Geneva.