Thuluth is the script of verses and great walls: tall upright letters, wide curves, legible from the far end of a majlis. Diwani is the script of the chancery and of names: round letters that interlace and climb at a slant, at their best up close. If your words are a verse for a large wall, Thuluth is usually the answer; if they are a name or a greeting, Diwani.
Thuluth
Thuluth is one of the six scripts on which classical Arabic calligraphy rests. Its rules of proportion are attributed to Ibn Muqla and then Ibn al-Bawwab in the Abbasid era, and it reached its height in the hands of the Ottoman masters. It is the script of mihrabs, mosque domes and Qur'an chapter headings, and the verses embroidered on the kiswah of the Kaaba are written in it. Every letter is measured in the rhombic dots the pen leaves, so words stack in layers, with vowel marks and small ornaments filling the space between them.
What the eye sees: long upright alifs and lams, wide sweeping endings, and a dense composition that can carry a whole verse in one line. Because it is read from a distance, it needs room: A2 and above for a long verse.
Diwani
Diwani was born in the chancery (the divan) of the Ottoman state after the conquest of Constantinople; its codification is attributed to Ibrahim Munif, and the sultans' decrees were written in it. Its letters are round, overlapping and embracing, its lines rise at a slant towards the left, and it usually goes without vowel marks. Its ornate form, Diwani Jali, fills the spaces with dots and ornament.
What the eye sees: one continuous flow without corners, and words knotted together. That is why it is the first choice for names, for a couple's two names together, and for wedding cards and greetings, and why it stays beautiful even at A4 on a shelf.
Which to choose?
- A verse for a majlis wall or an entrance: Thuluth, at A2 or larger.
- A name, a couple's names, a greeting: Diwani.
- A phrase every guest must read easily: neither; Naskh is clearer than both.
- A spot close to the eye, a shelf or a desk: Diwani holds up small better than Thuluth.
Compare them yourself
MASHQ has «بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم» in both scripts: in Thuluth and in Diwani, each from AED 60. Put them side by side and you will know which voice you want on your wall. If your words are different, write them in Mashq Studio, free, and switch between the two scripts in seconds.
Your name in Arabic calligraphy comes in Diwani or Thuluth, framed at A3 for AED 185. And for Thuluth as a calligrapher wrote it, a whole line: Thuluth master pieces, from AED 60.
A verse of the Qur'an is hung where it is honoured: at eye level or above, in a majlis, living room, study or entrance, never in a bathroom or near the floor.
Making and delivery
Paints are made to order in our UAE workshop in 5–7 working days; delivery anywhere in the UAE is AED 50 per order.
Related reading: Arabic Calligraphy Scripts Explained: Naskh, Thuluth, Diwani, Kufi, Ruq’ah and Nastaliq · How to Choose the Size of an Arabic Calligraphy Painting.