In short
An old Arabic story printed with all its small vowel signs above and below the letters. The lines are spaced wide enough that the signs of one line do not run into the line below.
What you'll build
Four pages of a classical Arabic book in which every letter carries its vowel: al-Hamadhānī’s Maqāma of the Madhouse, in which a madman in the asylum of Basra routs a theologian and then names himself in verse. Fully vocalised text stacks fatḥa and shadda over the letters and kasra under them, and the marks live in the space between lines. So the page is set in Amiri at 14 pt on 28 pt, twice the size, and nothing else: the leading is the design. The text is justified with kashidas, opens with a 1.5 em indent on the right, and sets its three Qurʾān quotations between the ornate brackets ﴿ ﴾ of the printed muṣḥaf. Only the Latin title line and the note on the text change with the edition.
This recipe answers
- How much leading does fully vocalised Arabic need?
The short answer
// Every letter of this maqāma carries its vowel: fatḥa and shadda over the letters, kasra
// and kasratān under them, often two marks on one letter. The marks sit in the leading,
// which never grows for them, so the leading is chosen for the most vocalised line of the
// book. Unvocalised prose sets well at 1.6 × the size; fully vocalised text needs
// 1.9–2.1 ×: here 14 pt on 28 pt, 2 ×, so a kasra hanging under one line clears a shadda
// standing on the line below. Any closer and the build reports the paragraph
// (arabicMarksExceedLeading) with the leading it would need.
const SIZE = 14; // pt
const LEAD = 2 * SIZE; // pt: 28
const bodyText = {
fontFamily: NASKH, fontSize: pt(SIZE), lineHeight: pt(LEAD), color: col('ink'),
boldColor: col('ink'), italicColor: col('ink'), referenceColor: col('ink'),
// Justified with kashidas, the default in an Arabic book, written out to say so:
// a line widens at its joins as well as at its spaces.
textAlign: 'justify', kashida: 'auto', kashidaPatterns: 'naskh',
firstLineIndent: em(1.5), indentAfterHeading: false, // on the start side, the right
optimalLineBreaking: true, avoidWidows: true, avoidOrphans: true,
};
A leading of 2 × the size for text with every vowel written
Ingredients
- Features
- Arabic fontsBody typeRight-to-left textArabic as the document languageIndents, alignment and paragraph spacingKashida justificationArabic verse (bayt in two hemistichs)Books bound on the rightParagraphs in the other directionHeading levelsTrim sizeMirrored marginsPaper colourSemantic colour palettePages on a canvas
- Type
- Amiri, Aref Ruqaa (SIL OFL 1.1)
- Assets
- None: every picture is drawn in code
Method
#1 · A leading of twice the size
The code is the short answer above. Leading never grows to make room for the marks: a kasra under one line and a shadda on top of the next share the same gap, so the gap is chosen for the most vocalised line of the book (Vowel marks). On this text, a leading of 1.6 × the size leaves six paragraphs whose marks collide and 1.9 × still leaves one; at 2 × none do. The build tells you: when two lines collide it reports arabicMarksExceedLeading for the paragraph, with the leading it would need (Arabic text).

#2 · A small page with a wide measure
// 166 mm of text block hold seventeen lines on the 28 pt pitch (9.88 mm). The measure is
// 106 mm, about twelve words of vocalised Naskh.
const page = {
sizePreset: 'custom', width: mm(140), height: mm(210), dpi: 150,
backgroundColor: col('paper'),
// mirror: left is the inner margin, at the spine (the right edge of an odd page here)
margins: { top: mm(22), bottom: mm(22), left: mm(18), right: mm(16), mirror: true },
};
A 14 × 21 cm page with 16 and 18 mm side margins leaves a 106 mm measure, about twelve vocalised words, and seventeen lines on the 28 pt pitch. The marks make the lines look grey, so the page stays plain: no running heads, a cream paper, one red title. mirror: true puts the wider margin at the spine, which in a book bound on the right is the right edge of an odd page (Page order and right binding).
#3 · Titles that keep the grid
// The headings carry no design: the title's line box, three lines of the grid deep, lowers
// it on the page (a top margin is dropped at the head of a page), and the levels under it
// keep to the 28 pt pitch, so the text starts on a line of the grid.
const headings = {
fontFamily: NASKH, color: col('ink'), textAlign: 'center',
levels: [
// Restated: any headings object drops the H1 break (gotcha: headings-drop-h1-break).
{ level: 1, fontFamily: RUQAA, fontWeight: 700, fontSize: pt(32), lineHeight: pt(LEAD * 3),
color: col('rubric'), marginTop: pt(0), marginBottom: pt(0),
breakBefore: { enabled: true, parity: 'odd' } },
{ level: 2, fontWeight: 700, fontSize: pt(15), lineHeight: pt(LEAD), color: col('ink'),
marginTop: pt(0), marginBottom: pt(0) },
{ level: 3, fontWeight: 400, fontSize: pt(10), lineHeight: pt(LEAD), color: col('muted'),
marginTop: pt(0), marginBottom: pt(LEAD) },
],
};
The headings have no design: the Ruqʿa title sits in a line box three lines of the grid deep, and the author and the Latin line each take one line of 28 pt, so the first line of text falls on the grid. The Latin line is {dir=ltr}, a left-to-right heading in a right-to-left book (Document, block and inline direction).
The whole recipe
// ═══ Postext Cookbook · Nº 111 · Fully vocalised classical prose with Qur'anic brackets ═══ // https://postext.dev/en/cookbook/vocalised-classical-prose // Code: MIT · Text: al-Hamadhānī, Maqāmāt, ar.wikisource (PD) · Pictures: none // Fonts: Amiri, Aref Ruqaa (SIL OFL 1.1) · Needs postext ≥ 1.15.0 import { buildDocument, renderPageToCanvas, clearMeasurementCache } from 'https://esm.sh/postext'; const LANG = 'en'; // @lang: the language of the sample document ('en' | 'es') const RECIPE = 'vocalised-classical-prose'; // ─── 1 · Design ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── // Black text and a red title on a cream page, as the Beirut and Cairo editions of the // Maqāmāt print them. const palette = { ink: '#211b17', // text: a warm near-black rubric: '#94291d', // the accent: the title muted: '#6b6156', // the author's name, the Latin title line, the note on the text paper: '#fbf7ee', // a cream paper }; const col = (id) => ({ hex: palette[id], model: 'hex', paletteId: id }); const colorPalette = [ ...Object.entries(palette).map(([id, hex]) => ({ id, name: id, value: { hex, model: 'hex' } })), { id: 'main-color', name: 'rubric (defaults)', value: { hex: palette.rubric, model: 'hex' } }, ]; const NASKH = 'Amiri'; // the text: a Bulaq Naskh, with its own Latin for the note const RUQAA = 'Aref Ruqaa'; // display: the title // #region answer: a leading of 2 × the size for text with every vowel written // Every letter of this maqāma carries its vowel: fatḥa and shadda over the letters, kasra // and kasratān under them, often two marks on one letter. The marks sit in the leading, // which never grows for them, so the leading is chosen for the most vocalised line of the // book. Unvocalised prose sets well at 1.6 × the size; fully vocalised text needs // 1.9–2.1 ×: here 14 pt on 28 pt, 2 ×, so a kasra hanging under one line clears a shadda // standing on the line below. Any closer and the build reports the paragraph // (arabicMarksExceedLeading) with the leading it would need. const SIZE = 14; // pt const LEAD = 2 * SIZE; // pt: 28 const bodyText = { fontFamily: NASKH, fontSize: pt(SIZE), lineHeight: pt(LEAD), color: col('ink'), boldColor: col('ink'), italicColor: col('ink'), referenceColor: col('ink'), // Justified with kashidas, the default in an Arabic book, written out to say so: // a line widens at its joins as well as at its spaces. textAlign: 'justify', kashida: 'auto', kashidaPatterns: 'naskh', firstLineIndent: em(1.5), indentAfterHeading: false, // on the start side, the right optimalLineBreaking: true, avoidWidows: true, avoidOrphans: true, }; // #endregion // #region page: a 14 × 21 cm book page, seventeen lines of 28 pt // 166 mm of text block hold seventeen lines on the 28 pt pitch (9.88 mm). The measure is // 106 mm, about twelve words of vocalised Naskh. const page = { sizePreset: 'custom', width: mm(140), height: mm(210), dpi: 150, backgroundColor: col('paper'), // mirror: left is the inner margin, at the spine (the right edge of an odd page here) margins: { top: mm(22), bottom: mm(22), left: mm(18), right: mm(16), mirror: true }, }; // #endregion // #region titles: the maqāma's title in Ruqʿa, its author and a Latin line under it // The headings carry no design: the title's line box, three lines of the grid deep, lowers // it on the page (a top margin is dropped at the head of a page), and the levels under it // keep to the 28 pt pitch, so the text starts on a line of the grid. const headings = { fontFamily: NASKH, color: col('ink'), textAlign: 'center', levels: [ // Restated: any headings object drops the H1 break (gotcha: headings-drop-h1-break). { level: 1, fontFamily: RUQAA, fontWeight: 700, fontSize: pt(32), lineHeight: pt(LEAD * 3), color: col('rubric'), marginTop: pt(0), marginBottom: pt(0), breakBefore: { enabled: true, parity: 'odd' } }, { level: 2, fontWeight: 700, fontSize: pt(15), lineHeight: pt(LEAD), color: col('ink'), marginTop: pt(0), marginBottom: pt(0) }, { level: 3, fontWeight: 400, fontSize: pt(10), lineHeight: pt(LEAD), color: col('muted'), marginTop: pt(0), marginBottom: pt(LEAD) }, ], }; // #endregion const config = () => ({ // a factory: the engine caches resolved configs per object locale: 'ar', // right to left, bound on the right, digits ٠–٩ (gotcha: arabic-locale-tag) colorPalette, page, layout: { layoutType: 'single' }, // the default is two columns bodyText, headings, header: { elements: [] }, // a single maqāma: no running heads footer: { elements: [] }, }); // ─── 2 · Content ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── const markdown = String.raw`---Markdown sample · 29 lines · content.en.md
title: "مقامات بديع الزمان الهمذاني" --- # المقامة المارستانية ## بديع الزمان الهمذاني ### Al-Maqāma al-Māristāniyya · The Maqāma of the Madhouse {dir=ltr} حَدَّثَنا عِيسَى بْنُ هِشَامٍ قَالَ: دَخَلْتُ مَارسْتانَ البَصْرَةِ وَمَعِي أَبُو داوُدَ المُتَكَلِّمُ، فَنَظَرْتُ إِلَى مَجْنُونٍ تَأْخُذُنِي عَيْنُهُ وَتَدَعُنِي فَقالَ: إِنْ تَصْدُقِ الطَّيْرُ فَأَنْتُمْ غُرَباءُ، فَقُلْنَا: كَذلِكَ، فَقَالَ: مَنِ القَوْمُ للهِ أَبُوهُمْ؟ فَقُلْتُ: أَنَا عِيسَى ابْنُ هِشامٍ وَهَذَا أَبُو دَاوُدَ المُتَكَلِّمُ فَقالَ: العَسْكَرِيُّ؟ قُلْتُ: نَعَمْ، فَقَالَ: شَاهَتِ الوُجُوهُ وَأَهْلُهَا إِنَّ الخَيْرَةَ للهِ لا لِعَبْدِهِ، وَالأُمُورَ بِيَدِ اللهِ لا بِيَدِهِ وَأَنْتُمْ يا مَجُوسَ هذِهِ الأُمَّةِ تَعِيشُونَ جَبْراً، وَتَمُوتُونَ صَبْراً وَتُسَاقُونَ إِلى المَقْدُورِ قَهْراً، وَ﴿لَوْ كُنْتُمْ في بُيُوتِكُمْ لَبَرَزَ الَّذينَ كُتِبَ عَلَيْهِمُ القَتْلُ إِلى مَضَاجِعِهِمْ﴾، أَفَلا تُنْصِفُونَ، إِنْ كَانَ الأَمْرُ كَمَا تَصِفُونَ؟ وَتَقُولونَ: خالِقُ الظُلْمِ ظَالِمٌ! أَفَلا تَقُولُونَ: خَالِقُ الهُلْكِ هَالِكٌ؟ أَتَعْلَمُونَ يَقِينَاً، أَنَّكُمْ أَخْبَثُ مِنْ إِبْليسَ دِيناً؟ قَالَ: ﴿رَبِّ بِمَا أَغْوَيْتَني﴾، فَأَقَرَّ وَأَنْكَرْتُمْ وَآمَنَ وَكَفَرْتُمْ، وَتَقُولونَ: خُيِّرَ فَاخْتَارَ، وَكَلاَّ فَإِنَّ المُخْتارَ لاَ يَبْعَجُ بَطْنَهُ، وَلاَ يَفْقَأُ عَيْنَهُ وَلا يَرْمِي مِنْ حالِقِ ابْنَهُ، فَهَلِ الإِكْرَاهُ إِلاَّ مَا تَرَاهُ؟ وَالإِكْرَاهُ مَرَّةً بِالمَرَّةِ وَمَرَّةً بِالدِّرَّةِ. فَلْيُخْزِكُمْ أَنَّ القُرْآنَ بَغِيضُكُمْ، وَأَنَّ الحَديثَ يَغِيظُكُمْ، إِذَا سَمِعْتُمْ: ﴿مَنْ يُضْلِلِ اللهُ فَلا هَادِيَ لَهُ﴾ أَلْحَدْتُمْ وَإِذَا سَمِعْتُمْ: «زُوِيَتْ لِيَ الأَرْضُ فَأُرِيتُ مَشَارِقَهَا وَمَغَارِبَهَا» جَحَدْتُمْ وَإِذَا سَمِعْتُمْ: «عُرِضَتْ عَلَيَّ الجَنَّةُ حَتَّى هَمَمْتُ أَنْ أَقْطِفَ ثِمَارَهَا، وَعُرِضَتْ عَلَيَّ النَّارُ حَتَّى اتَّقَيْتُ حَرَّهَا بِيَدِي» أَنْغَضْتُمْ رُؤُوسَكُمْ وَلَوَيْتُمْ أَعْنَاقَكُمْ وَإِنْ قِيلَ: «عَذابُ القَبْرِ» تَطَيَّرْتُم، وَإِنْ قيلَ: «الصِّراطُ» تَغَامَزْتُمْ وَإِنْ ذُكِرَ المِيزَانُ قُلْتُمْ: مِنَ الفِرْغِ كِفَّتَاهُ، وَإِنْ ذُكِرَ الكِتابُ قُلْتُمْ: مِنَ القِدِّ دَفَّتَاهُ، يَا أَعْدَاءَ الكِتابِ وَالحَديثِ، بِماذَا تَطَّيَّرُونَ؟ أَباللهِ وَآياتِهِ وَرَسُولِهِ تَسْتَهْزِئُونَ؟ إِنَّما مَرَقتْ مَارِقَةٌ فَكَانُوا خَبَثَ الحَديثِ، ثُمَّ مَرَقْتُمْ مِنْها فَأَنْتُمْ خَبَثُ الخَبِيثِ، يَا مَخَابِيثَ الخَوارجِ، تَرَوْنَ رَأْيَهُمْ إِلاَّ القِتَالَ! وَأَنْتَ يا ابْنَ هِشامٍ تُؤْمِنُ بِبَعْضِ الكِتَابِ وَتَكْفُرُ بِبَعْضٍ؟ سَمِعْتُ أَنَّكَ افْتَرَشْتَ مِنهُمْ شَيْطَانَةً! أَلَمْ يَنْهَكَ اللهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ أَنْ تَتَّخِذَ مِنْهُمْ بِطَانَةً؟ وَيْلَكَ هَلاَّ تَخَيَّرْتَ لِنُطْفَتِكَ، وَنَظَرْتَ لِعَقِبِكَ؟ ثُمَّ قَالَ: اللَّهُمَّ أَبْدِلْنِي بِهؤُلاءِ خَيْراً مِنْهُمْ، وَأَشْهِدْنِي مَلائِكَتَكَ. قَالَ عِيسَى بْنُ هِشَامٍ: فَبَقِيتُ وَبَقِي أَبُو دَاوُدَ لا نُحِيرُ جَوَاباً، وَرَجَعْنَا عَنْهُ بِشَرٍّ وإِنِّي لأَعْرِفُ فِي أَبي دَاوُدَ انْكِسَاراً، حَتَّى إِذَا أَرَدْنَا الافْتِراقَ قَالَ: يا عِيسَى هَذا وَأَبِيكَ الحَدِيثُ، فَمَا الَّذي أَرَادَ بِالشَّيْطَانَةِ؟ قُلْتُ: لاَ واللهِ مَا أَدْرِي، غَيْرَ أَنِّي هَمَمْتُ أَنْ أَخْطُبَ إِلَى أَحَدِهِمْ وَلَمْ أُحَدِّثْ بِما هَمَمْتُ بِهِ أَحَداً، وَاللهِ لا أَفْعَلُ ذَلِكَ أَبَداً، فَقَالَ: مَا هَذا وَاللهِ إِلاَّ شَيْطَانٌ فِي أَشْطَانٍ، فَرَجَعْنَا إِلَيْهِ، وَوَقَفْنَا عَلَيْهِ، فَابْتَدَرَ بِالْمَقَالِ، وَبَدَأَنَا بِالسُّؤَالِ، فَقالَ: لَعَلَّكُمَا آثَرْتُمَا، أَنْ تَعْرِفَا مِنْ أَمْرِي ما أَنْكَرْتُمَا، فَقُلْنَا: كُنْتَ مِنْ قَبْلُ مُطَّلِعَاً على أُمُورِنَا، وَلَمْ تَعْدُ الآنَ مَا في صُدُورِنَا، فَفَسِّرْ لَنَا أَمْرَكَ، وَاكْشِفْ لَنَا سِرَّكَ، فَقالَ: :::verse أَنَا يَنْبُوعُ العَجَائِبْ || فِي احْتِيَالِي ذُو مَرَاتِبْ أَنَا فِي الحَقِّ سَنَامٌ || أَنَا في البَاطِلِ غَارِبْ أَنَا إِسكَنْدَرُ دَارِي || فِي بِلادِ اللهِ سَارِبْ أَغْتَدِي فِي الدَّيْرِ قِسِّيساً || وَفي المَسْجِدِ رَاهِبْ ::: :::paragraphs{dir=ltr} **A note on the text.** Badīʿ al-Zamān al-Hamadhānī (968–1008) wrote the first maqāmāt, tales in rhymed prose in which the narrator ʿĪsā ibn Hishām meets the rogue Abū al-Fatḥ al-Iskandarī in one disguise after another. Here a madman in the asylum of Basra routs a theologian who holds that men choose their own acts. The text is that of ar.wikisource, every letter vocalised; twenty typing slips are corrected and the paragraphs are ours. The three Qurʾān quotations (3:154, 15:39, 7:186) stand between ornate brackets, the Prophet’s sayings between « ». Set in Amiri and Aref Ruqaa (SIL OFL) · Text: al-Hamadhānī, public domain, from ar.wikisource :::`; // content.<lang>.md, inlined by the Cookbook // ─── 3 · Fonts ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── const FONTS = { // every face the pages use, loaded before the build (gotcha: fonts-first) Amiri: ['400', '700'], // NASKH: the maqāma, the author, the note and its Latin 'Aref Ruqaa': ['700'], // RUQAA: the title }; // ─── 4 · Build & show ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────── await loadFonts(FONTS, markdown); // The arabic file of each face, which loadFonts leaves out (gotcha: arabic-fonts-subset). await loadArabicFonts(FONTS, markdown); const doc = await buildWithFonts(() => buildDocument({ markdown }, config()), markdown); showBook(doc, { title: t({ en: 'Fully vocalised classical prose', es: 'Prosa clásica con todas sus vocales' }) });Kit · core, fonts, viewer, arabic, book: the same in every recipe · 371 lines
// ─── Kit ── helpers shared by every Cookbook recipe · postext.dev/cookbook ───── // ─── Kit · core v1 ── the same in every recipe · postext.dev/cookbook ───────── function mm(value) { return { value, unit: 'mm' }; } function pt(value) { return { value, unit: 'pt' }; } function em(value) { return { value, unit: 'em' }; } /** The sample language's string: t({ en: 'Figure', es: 'Figura' }). */ function t(strings) { return strings[LANG] ?? Object.values(strings)[0]; } /** A file in this recipe's assets folder, served from the Postext repo by jsDelivr. */ function asset(file) { return `https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/gh/drnachio/postext@main/cookbook/${RECIPE}/assets/${file}`; } // ─── Kit · fonts v1 ── the same in every recipe · postext.dev/cookbook ──────── // Postext measures text with the faces the browser has loaded, and caches the // widths, so every face must be ready before the first build. Faces come from // Fontsource: the same static files the PDF embeds, so screen and PDF agree. /** faces = { 'Family Name': ['400', '400i', '700'] }. `text` is the sample: * letters beyond Latin-1 (č, ł, ő…) also load the latin-ext files. With * `optional`, a face Fontsource does not ship is skipped instead of failing. * Resolves to the number of faces added. */ async function loadFonts(faces, text = '', { optional = false } = {}) { kitStatus('Loading fonts…'); const ranges = { latin: 'U+0000-00FF,U+0131,U+0152-0153,U+02BB-02BC,U+02C6,U+02DA,U+02DC,U+0304,U+0308,U+0329,' + 'U+2000-206F,U+20AC,U+2122,U+2191,U+2193,U+2212,U+2215,U+FEFF,U+FFFD', 'latin-ext': 'U+0100-02BA,U+02BD-02C5,U+02C7-02CC,U+02CE-02D7,U+02DD-02FF,U+0304,U+0308,U+0329,' + 'U+1D00-1DBF,U+1E00-1E9F,U+1EF2-1EFF,U+2020,U+20A0-20AB,U+20AD-20C0,U+2113,U+2C60-2C7F,U+A720-A7FF', }; const subsets = /[Ā-˿Ḁ-ỿ]/.test(text) ? ['latin', 'latin-ext'] : ['latin']; const jobs = []; let added = 0; for (const [family, specs] of Object.entries(faces)) { const id = fontsourceId(family); const meta = optional ? await fontsourceMeta(family) : null; for (const spec of new Set(specs)) { const weight = parseInt(spec, 10); const style = spec.endsWith('i') ? 'italic' : 'normal'; if (hasFace(family, weight, style)) continue; if (optional && !(meta?.weights.includes(weight) && meta.styles.includes(style))) continue; for (const subset of subsets) { const url = `https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@fontsource/${id}@5/files/${id}-${subset}-${weight}-${style}.woff2`; const face = new FontFace(family, `url(${url}) format('woff2')`, { weight: String(weight), style, unicodeRange: ranges[subset] }); jobs.push(face.load().then((ready) => { document.fonts.add(ready); added++; }, () => { if (subset === 'latin' && !optional) throw new Error(`Fontsource has no ${family} ${weight} ${style}`); })); } } } await Promise.all(jobs).catch((error) => { kitFail(error); throw error; }); return added; } /** Runs `build` (a buildDocument or buildBundle call) and checks the faces * the pages use. A regular face missing from FONTS is loaded with a warning; * bold and italic variants are loaded when the family ships them. Then the * measurement caches are cleared and the build runs again. */ async function buildWithFonts(build, text = '') { const tried = new Set(); for (let round = 0; round < 3; round++) { kitStatus('Laying out…'); await new Promise(requestAnimationFrame); // let the status paint first const result = await Promise.resolve().then(build).catch((error) => { kitFail(error); throw error; }); const wanted = { base: {}, variants: {} }; for (const { font, base } of [result].flat().flatMap(fontStringsOf)) { const { family, weight, style } = parseFont(font); const key = `${family}|${weight}|${style}`; if (tried.has(key) || hasFace(family, weight, style)) continue; tried.add(key); (wanted[base ? 'base' : 'variants'][family] ??= []).push(`${weight}${style === 'italic' ? 'i' : ''}`); } if (Object.keys(wanted.base).length) { console.warn(`[cookbook] FONTS does not list ${JSON.stringify(wanted.base)}: loading them.`); } const added = await loadFonts(wanted.base, text) + await loadFonts(wanted.variants, text, { optional: true }); if (added === 0) return result; clearMeasurementCache(); } throw new Error('The fonts did not settle after three builds.'); } /** Every font string of the layout. `base` marks a block's own face; its * bold, italic and bold-italic variants are listed whether or not used. */ function fontStringsOf(doc) { const found = new Map(); const walk = (node) => { if (!node || typeof node !== 'object') return; if (Array.isArray(node)) { node.forEach(walk); return; } for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(node)) { if (typeof value === 'string' && /fontString$/i.test(key)) { found.set(value, found.get(value) || key === 'fontString'); } else if (value && typeof value === 'object') walk(value); } }; walk(doc.pages); walk(doc.blocks); return [...found].map(([font, base]) => ({ font, base })); } /** '700 37.5px Open Sans' / 'italic 400 13px "Source Serif 4"' → { family, weight, style }. * A string with no weight ('95.8px Young Serif', from a design text) is 400. */ function parseFont(font) { const m = /^(?:(italic|oblique)\s+)?(?:small-caps\s+)?(?:(\d+|bold|normal)\s+)?[\d.]+px\s+(.+)$/.exec(font.trim()); if (!m) throw new Error(`Unexpected font string: ${font}`); const weight = m[2] === 'bold' ? 700 : !m[2] || m[2] === 'normal' ? 400 : Number(m[2]); return { family: m[3].replace(/^["']|["']$/g, ''), weight, style: m[1] ? 'italic' : 'normal' }; } /** True when a loaded FontFace covers exactly this family, weight and style * (document.fonts.check() is also true for families nobody declared). */ function hasFace(family, weight, style) { for (const face of document.fonts) { if (face.status !== 'loaded' || face.style !== style) continue; if (face.family.replace(/^["']|["']$/g, '') !== family) continue; const [low, high = low] = face.weight.split(' ').map(Number); if (weight >= low && weight <= high) return true; } return false; } /** Fontsource's id for a family: 'Source Serif 4' → 'source-serif-4'. */ function fontsourceId(family) { return family.toLowerCase().replace(/\s+/g, '-'); } /** The weights and styles a family ships ({ weights: [400, 700], styles: ['normal', 'italic'] }), or null. */ function fontsourceMeta(family) { fontsourceMeta.cache ??= new Map(); const id = fontsourceId(family); if (!fontsourceMeta.cache.has(id)) { fontsourceMeta.cache.set(id, fetch(`https://api.fontsource.org/v1/fonts/${id}`) .then((res) => (res.ok ? res.json() : null), () => null)); } return fontsourceMeta.cache.get(id); } // ─── Kit · viewer v1 ── the same in every recipe · postext.dev/cookbook ─────── /** Shows the pages as facing spreads on a dark desk: the first page is a * recto on its own, then verso | recto pairs, as in a bound book. Pages * are painted when they scroll near the screen. */ function showPages(docs, { title, width = 460 } = {}) { const root = viewer(title); const pages = [docs].flat().flatMap((doc) => doc.pages.map((page) => ({ doc, page, n: (doc.pageIndexOffset ?? 0) + page.index }))); const spreads = []; let verso = null; for (const p of pages) { if (p.n % 2 === 1) { if (verso) spreads.push([verso, null]); verso = p; } else { spreads.push([verso, p]); verso = null; } } if (verso) spreads.push([verso, null]); const density = Math.min(window.devicePixelRatio || 1, 2); showPages.painter?.disconnect(); const painter = new IntersectionObserver((entries) => { for (const { isIntersecting, target } of entries) { if (!isIntersecting) continue; painter.unobserve(target); const { doc, page } = target.postext; renderPageToCanvas(page, doc, target, { scale: (width * density) / page.width }); } }, { rootMargin: '800px' }); showPages.painter = painter; root.replaceChildren(...spreads.map((pair) => { const spread = document.createElement('div'); spread.className = 'pt-spread'; for (const p of pair) { const figure = document.createElement('figure'); if (p) { const label = p.page.pageLabel || String(p.n + 1); const canvas = document.createElement('canvas'); canvas.postext = p; canvas.style.aspectRatio = `${p.page.width} / ${p.page.height}`; canvas.setAttribute('role', 'img'); canvas.setAttribute('aria-label', `Page ${label}`); const folio = document.createElement('figcaption'); folio.textContent = label; figure.append(canvas, folio); painter.observe(canvas); } else figure.className = 'pt-blank'; spread.append(figure); } return spread; })); kitStatus(`${pages.length} ${pages.length === 1 ? 'page' : 'pages'}`); document.documentElement.dataset.postext = 'ready'; return pages.length; } /** The desk, the bar and the error reporting, created once. */ function viewer(title) { if (!document.getElementById('pt-kit')) { document.head.insertAdjacentHTML('beforeend', `<style id="pt-kit"> :root { color-scheme: dark; } body { margin: 0; background: #0e1014; color: #b9bcc4; font: 13px/1.45 system-ui, sans-serif; } #pt-bar { position: sticky; top: 0; z-index: 1; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; align-items: center; gap: 6px 16px; padding: 10px 16px; background: rgb(14 16 20 / .92); backdrop-filter: blur(6px); border-bottom: 1px solid #23262d; } #pt-bar strong { color: #f4f1ea; font-weight: 600; } #pt-actions { display: flex; gap: 12px; margin-left: auto; } #pt-actions a, #pt-actions button { color: #d8a21a; font: inherit; background: none; border: 0; padding: 0; cursor: pointer; } #pages { display: grid; justify-items: center; gap: 48px; padding: 32px 16px 72px; } .pt-spread { display: flex; } .pt-spread figure { margin: 0; width: min(460px, 44vw); } .pt-spread canvas { display: block; width: 100%; background: #fff; box-shadow: 0 1px 2px rgb(0 0 0 / .5), 0 22px 44px -16px rgb(0 0 0 / .8); } .pt-spread figure:first-child canvas { box-shadow: inset -14px 0 14px -14px rgb(0 0 0 / .18), 0 1px 2px rgb(0 0 0 / .5), 0 22px 44px -16px rgb(0 0 0 / .8); } .pt-spread figcaption { margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; font: 600 10px/1 system-ui, sans-serif; letter-spacing: .18em; text-transform: uppercase; color: #6c7079; } .pt-blank { visibility: hidden; } @media (max-width: 760px) { .pt-spread { flex-direction: column; gap: 32px; } .pt-spread figure { width: min(460px, 92vw); } .pt-blank { display: none; } } </style>`); document.body.insertAdjacentHTML('afterbegin', '<header id="pt-bar"><strong id="pt-title"></strong><span id="pt-status" role="status"></span><span id="pt-actions"></span></header>'); document.getElementById('pt-title').textContent = document.title || 'Postext'; addEventListener('error', (event) => kitFail(event.error ?? event.message)); addEventListener('unhandledrejection', (event) => kitFail(event.reason)); } if (title) document.getElementById('pt-title').textContent = title; return document.getElementById('pages') ?? document.body.appendChild(Object.assign(document.createElement('main'), { id: 'pages' })); } function kitStatus(text) { viewer(); document.getElementById('pt-status').textContent = text; } function kitFail(error) { document.documentElement.dataset.postext = 'error'; kitStatus(`Error: ${error?.message ?? error}`); } // ─── Kit · arabic v1 ── Arabic-script faces · postext.dev/cookbook ─────────── // Fontsource ships an Arabic family as one file per subset and weight: the // `arabic` file holds the letters, the harakat, the Arabic-Indic digits, the // Arabic punctuation and the presentation forms; `latin` and `latin-ext` // hold the rest. loadFonts loads the latin files; this block adds the arabic // file of every Arabic family, for the canvas and for the PDF, which shapes // the letters with HarfBuzz from the same bytes. /** The code points of Fontsource's `arabic` subset, as its stylesheets * declare them (the same unicode-range the browser picks the file by). A * function, not a const: the kit is inlined after the recipe's top-level * awaits, and a const read before its line throws, where a function * declaration is hoisted. */ function arabicRange() { return 'U+0600-06FF,U+0750-077F,U+0870-088E,U+0890-0891,U+0897-08E1,U+08E3-08FF,' + 'U+200C-200E,U+2010-2011,U+204F,U+2E41,U+FB50-FDFF,U+FE70-FE74,U+FE76-FEFC,U+102E0-102FB,' + 'U+10E60-10E7E,U+10EC2-10EC4,U+10EFC-10EFF,U+1EE00-1EEFF'; } /** Whether code point `cp` is in the arabic file. */ function inArabicRange(cp) { inArabicRange.ranges ??= arabicRange().split(',').map((part) => { const [lo, hi = lo] = part.slice(2).split('-'); return [parseInt(lo, 16), parseInt(hi, 16)]; }); return inArabicRange.ranges.some(([lo, hi]) => cp >= lo && cp <= hi); } /** Whether Fontsource serves `family` with an `arabic` subset. Fails when * the API does not answer: an Arabic face taken for a Latin one would set * its letters in a system face. */ async function isArabicFamily(family) { const meta = await fontsourceMeta(family); if (!meta) throw new Error(`api.fontsource.org did not describe ${family}: reload to try again`); return !!meta.subsets?.includes('arabic'); } /** The arabic file of a face. */ function arabicFileUrl(family, weight, style) { const id = fontsourceId(family); return `https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@fontsource/${id}@5/files/${id}-arabic-${weight}-${style}.woff2`; } /** faces = { Amiri: ['400', '700'] }, as for loadFonts, after it: the whole * FONTS object may be passed, its families without an arabic subset are * left alone. Adds the arabic file of every listed weight of each Arabic * family (the latin files come from loadFonts) and loads it. `text` is * the sample: fails when it holds an Arabic-script character the arabic * file does not cover. List every weight the pages set in Arabic: a weight * left to buildWithFonts gets the latin file only, and its Arabic letters * fall back to a system face. Resolves to the number of files loaded. */ async function loadArabicFonts(faces, text = '') { kitStatus('Loading fonts…'); let loaded = 0; try { const outside = [...new Set(text)].filter((ch) => /\p{Script=Arabic}/u.test(ch) && !inArabicRange(ch.codePointAt(0))); if (outside.length) throw new Error(`Fontsource's arabic files have no ${outside.slice(0, 12).join(' ')}`); for (const [family, specs] of Object.entries(faces)) { if (!(await isArabicFamily(family))) continue; for (const spec of new Set(specs)) { const weight = parseInt(spec, 10); const style = spec.endsWith('i') ? 'italic' : 'normal'; const face = new FontFace(family, `url(${arabicFileUrl(family, weight, style)}) format('woff2')`, { weight: String(weight), style, unicodeRange: arabicRange() }); document.fonts.add(await face.load().catch(() => { throw new Error(`Fontsource has no arabic file for ${family} ${weight} ${style}`); })); loaded++; } } } catch (error) { kitFail(error); throw error; } return loaded; } /** The PDF font provider for recipes with Arabic faces: a family with an * arabic subset gets its arabic file when its pages set Arabic letters * (`request.codePoints`), then its latin file, and its latin-ext file for * the letters beyond latin (transliteration: ā ḥ ʿ). The arabic file comes * first: it also holds the space and the brackets, so a line of Arabic is * shaped as one run and not cut at every space. Any other family goes to * fontsourceProvider (the "pdf" block). */ async function arabicPdfProvider(family, weight, style, request) { if (!(await isArabicFamily(family))) return fontsourceProvider(family, weight, style); const meta = await fontsourceMeta(family); const weights = meta.weights?.length ? meta.weights : [400, 700]; const w = weights.reduce((a, b) => (Math.abs(b - weight) < Math.abs(a - weight) ? b : a)); const s = style === 'italic' && !meta.styles.includes('italic') ? 'normal' : style; const wanted = [...(request?.codePoints ?? [])]; const id = fontsourceId(family); const urls = []; if (!wanted.length || wanted.some(inArabicRange)) urls.push(arabicFileUrl(family, w, s)); urls.push(`https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@fontsource/${id}@5/files/${id}-latin-${w}-${s}.woff2`); if (meta.subsets.includes('latin-ext') && wanted.some((cp) => /[Ā-˿Ḁ-ỿ]/u.test(String.fromCodePoint(cp)))) { urls.push(`https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@fontsource/${id}@5/files/${id}-latin-ext-${w}-${s}.woff2`); } return Promise.all(urls.map(async (url) => { const res = await fetch(url); if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`Fontsource file ${url} (${res.status})`); return decompressWoff2(new Uint8Array(await res.arrayBuffer())); })); } // ─── Kit · book v1 ── books bound on either edge · postext.dev/cookbook ────── // A book bound on the right (Arabic, Hebrew or Persian text, vertical // Chinese, or page.binding 'right') opens from what a Latin reader calls // the back: page 1 lies alone on the left of the spine, then [3 | 2]. /** showPages for a book bound on either edge. A right-bound book (the * document says so: doc.binding is 'right' for page.binding 'right', for * text that runs right to left and for vertical text, when the binding is * left to 'auto') lies on the desk as it opens: page 1 alone on the left * of the spine, then [3 | 2], the spine shade on each page's inner edge. * `binding` ('left' | 'right') overrides the document's. */ function showBook(docs, { binding, ...options } = {}) { const count = showPages(docs, options); const right = (binding ?? [docs].flat()[0]?.binding) === 'right'; if (!document.getElementById('pt-kit-book')) { // The pages keep direction ltr, as in a left-bound book: a canvas takes // the direction its element inherits, and under the spread's rtl a run // painted for an ltr canvas would end where the engine starts it. document.head.insertAdjacentHTML('beforeend', `<style id="pt-kit-book"> .pt-spread[dir="rtl"] canvas { direction: ltr; } .pt-spread[dir="rtl"] figure:first-child canvas { box-shadow: inset 14px 0 14px -14px rgb(0 0 0 / .18), 0 1px 2px rgb(0 0 0 / .5), 0 22px 44px -16px rgb(0 0 0 / .8); } </style>`); } // Each pair stays [verso, recto] in the page; right to left, the verso // sits on the right. Phones stack the pages in reading order either way. for (const spread of document.querySelectorAll('#pages > .pt-spread')) spread.dir = right ? 'rtl' : 'ltr'; document.getElementById('pages').dataset.binding = right ? 'right' : 'left'; return count; } // ─── /Kit ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
The composed script.js runs as it is: paste it into any page’s module script, or open the recipe on CodePen. Recipe folder on GitHub ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Variations
#Strip the vowels for a reading edition
tashkil: 'strip' removes the short vowels and the shadda from the layout, so the same text can be set at 1.6 × the size; 'strip-vowels' keeps the shadda.
- textAlign: 'justify', kashida: 'auto', kashidaPatterns: 'naskh',
+ textAlign: 'justify', kashida: 'auto', kashidaPatterns: 'naskh', tashkil: 'strip',#See the warning
Set the leading to 1.6 × the size and the build reports six paragraphs with arabicMarksExceedLeading, each with the leading it needs, up to 1.89 em on this text.
-const LEAD = 2 * SIZE; // pt: 28
+const LEAD = 1.6 * SIZE; // pt: 22.4Pitfalls
Pitfall
Tag an Arabic book 'ar', not with LANG
A recipe's editions are en and es, but an Arabic sample is Arabic in both: `locale: LANG` would set it left to right, bind it on the left, number its pages 1 2 3 and caption its figures Figure or Figura. Write the tag yourself: 'ar' (Arabic-Indic digits, the Mashriq convention), a region such as 'ar-EG' or 'ar-SA', or 'ar-MA', 'ar-DZ' or 'ar-TN' for a Maghreb edition with European digits. A Latin page that only quotes Arabic keeps its own locale. Right-to-left text →
Pitfall
Arabic faces need their arabic file, through the arabic block
Fontsource serves Amiri, Noto Naskh Arabic or Scheherazade New as one file per subset, and the Arabic letters are in the arabic file. loadFonts fetches only latin (and latin-ext), so on screen the Arabic comes from a system face and measures wrong, and fontsourceProvider hands the PDF that latin file, which prints empty boxes. List the arabic kit block, call loadArabicFonts(FONTS, markdown) after loadFonts, with every weight the pages set in Arabic listed in FONTS, and give renderToPdf fontProvider: arabicPdfProvider. Arabic fonts →
Pitfall
Any headings object switches off the H1 page break
By default an H1 breaks to a recto (always-odd), but passing any headings object resets that default, so chapters run on and span: 'page' does nothing. Restate headings.levels[0].breakBefore: { enabled: true, parity } in every config. Chapters that open on a recto →
Pitfall
Load every face before layout
Layout measures text with the faces the browser has loaded and caches the widths, so a face that arrives after the first build leaves wrong line breaks and a PDF that no longer matches the screen. Load every weight and style first, and call clearMeasurementCache() before rebuilding when one arrives late. Fonts before layout →
Layout warning · arabicMarksExceedLeading
Vowel marks crowd the next line
Why. A paragraph of vocalised Arabic sets its vowel marks (fatḥa, kasra, shadda, tanwīn…) in the leading, which never grows for them: where a mark over a word of one line reaches the letters or marks hanging under the word above it, the two lines touch.
Fix. Raise `bodyText.lineHeight` (1.7–1.85 em for partly vocalised text, 1.9–2.1 em for fully vocalised verse), give the paragraph a paragraph style with more leading, or set `bodyText.tashkil: 'strip-vowels'` for an edition without vowels. Docs →
Credits
- Recipe
- Ignacio Ferro
- Text
- Al-Maqāma al-Māristāniyya, fully vocalised, as ar.wikisource gives it (revision 601165), with twenty typing slips corrected, its paragraphs divided and its Qurʾān quotations set between ﴿ ﴾ · Badīʿ al-Zamān al-Hamadhānī · public domain
- The note on the text, the Latin title line and the colophon · Postext Cookbook · original
- Fonts
- Amiri (SIL OFL 1.1) · Aref Ruqaa (SIL OFL 1.1)
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