Beorcana can be classified as a serifless roman, a stressed sans, a glyphic sans, or calligraphic sans. However it is classified, Beorcana derives not only from other stressed sans designs like Lydian, Amerigo and Optima, but also utilizes classic Renaissance proportions in both Roman and Italic, which facilitate extended reading.

Beorcana is available in Display, regular Text and Micro styles. Beorcana’s Text styles offer comfort and liveliness in books, dictionaries, magazines and other reading-intensive settings. Display styles offer a stately and organic flavor for any application. Micro styles perform in tight and dense settings like dictionaries, bibles, maps and fine print.

The name Beorcana is a variant of the Icelandic word for the Birch tree, and the related words for the Icelandic rune. Many variant spellings are used for the tree and the rune: Beorc, Berkanan, Birkana, Bercano, Bjork, Bjarka. The Birch was revered as a symbol of renewal, due to its role as a pioneer species in burned, boggy or otherwise unforested areas.