Linotype Zapf Essentials is the modernized version of Zapf Dingbats and was also designed by Hermann Zapf himself. Over 372 characters and symbols are included within six fonts and make life a little more communicative, a little more informative, and a lot more interesting. The fonts contain symbols for both professional and everyday uses. With their markers, ornaments and arrows they are informative as well as versatile, timeless and lively.

An interesting note to the story of Zapf Essentials: in 1977, Hermann Zapf created about 1000 sketches of signs and symbols. ITC chose those which became known around the world as Zapf Dingbats. For a typesetter, dingbats are the characters in the corner of the type box which can be used for just about anything.

The last decade has seen the appearance of new symbols for e-mail, fax, mobile phones and other developments. These are now part of Linotype Zapf Essentials, just as they are now a part of everyday life.

For a quick overview of the different Linotype Essentials variations, see the keyboard layout PDF in the Gallery section. It shows the keyboard layout of each font.

A helpful hint from Hermann Zapf: Linotype Zapf Essentials should be used sparingly so that the characters retain their emphasis.