What are serifs?

Serifs are small legs or bars attached to glyphs in typefaces, and they have a specific purpose. The origin of serifs dates back to the Roman era, where they were used as terminators to make it easier to cut characters into stone. The first serif typeface, Trajan, was modeled after characters from a 2000-year-old column in Rome. Over time, serifs evolved, and new styles emerged, such as transitional serif and slab serif. Serifs are still in use today because they can provide hints for readers to allow faster comprehension, especially in print and programming. However, sans serif fonts can be more legible for children, people with low vision, and digital displays. Serifs are particularly useful in monospaced fonts, where they help address differences between characters and occupy space to avoid large gaps. There are also special cases, such as flare serifs, which achieve a similar effect without introducing a serif. Despite not always being used, serifs have specific strengths and can be instrumental in improving legibility. Now that you know what serifs are, you may start noticing them more often.