Introducion

The Lost Language Typography Project is a visual homage to the diversity of human expression and a memorial to the voices that have fallen silent. This project focuses on languages that are critically endangered or have already become extinct, drawing from linguistic archives, historical documents, and last-speaker recordings. For each language, we dive deep into its structure, its most unique sounds (phonemes), and its cultural context. We then collaborate with type designers and visual artists to create a custom typographic system that visually represents the essence of that language—its rhythm, its flow, and its soul.

An artwork for the Ubykh language, for example, known for its staggering number of consonants, might feature a dense, complex, and angular typeface. In contrast, a piece for the Hawaiian language, with its melodic vowel clusters, might use a flowing, organic script that resembles ocean waves. Each final art print is a large-scale, museum-quality giclée piece that features a key phrase or poem from the language, rendered in its custom typeface, alongside transliteration and translation. The background of each print often incorporates patterns, textures, and symbols culturally significant to the people who spoke the language, creating a rich, layered visual narrative.

This project is part art, part education, and part preservation. Accompanying each print is a booklet detailing the history of the language, the stories of its people, and the rationale behind the typographic choices. The goal is to create a powerful emotional connection to something that is often just a footnote in history books, giving a visual form to lost words and ensuring they are not forgotten. It is a celebration of linguistic diversity and a poignant reminder of what is lost when a language disappears.

Funding from this campaign will allow for extensive research into each language, commission fees for the type designers and artists, and the high-cost of printing large format giclée prints on archival paper. Your support helps give a visible voice to the silent.

Why support us?

This project raises awareness for linguistic preservation through the powerful medium of art. Your support funds the intensive research and custom design work required to do each language justice.

How Your Support Helps

Your contributions directly pay for academic research resources, artist commissions, and the production of the high-quality prints and informational booklets that accompany them.

Join the Movement

Become a patron of linguistic art and history. Help us create beautiful, meaningful tributes to the world's lost languages and the cultures they embodied.