Skip to content

Add to your Home Screen

  1. Tap the Share button in Safari's toolbar.
  2. Scroll down and tap Add to Home Screen.
  3. Tap Add. The generator opens full-screen and works offline.

Q in Old English Letters

By Maya Chen, lettering designer and type educator · Checked by Jordan Hale · · How we review content

Capital Q
Lowercase q

Rendered in the UnifrakturMaguntia typeface, an open-source font. It is a reference shape, not a hand-drawn letter.

Q is the least common letter on most pages, so it rarely gets practised, yet in a name or an initial it can look striking. The capital is an O with a decorative tail, often crossing the bowl, and the lowercase q is a bowl on a descending stem. Both borrow from O and p, so learn those first.

Outline version to colour or trace

Open in the Old English text generator →

How to draw a Old English capital Q

  1. 1Draw the capital as you would an O, with two thick curved sides at about 45 degrees and thin hairlines at top and bottom.
  2. 2Add the tail as a short diagonal stroke at the lower right, crossing the bowl's edge and ending in a diamond.
  3. 3Extend the tail with a thin hairline that flicks outward, keeping it well away from the next letter.
  4. 4Check that the tail is heavier than a hairline and lighter than the bowl, so it stands out without overpowering the shape.

Tip: Cross the bowl at the lower right with the tail, not at the bottom centre. A central tail turns the letter into a Q that looks like a pierced ball.

How to draw a Old English lowercase q

  1. 1Draw the bowl as in the lowercase o, two angled curves with pointed joins at the top and bottom.
  2. 2Pull the stem down on the right side of the bowl, passing the baseline and ending at the descender line.
  3. 3Finish the descender with a flat cut or a small diamond foot, matching the tails of p and g.
  4. 4Check that the bowl is closed and that the stem touches it without a gap.

Tip: Compare your q with d. They share the same bowl, and the stem is a mirror of the other's. If the bowls differ, one of them needs correcting.

What makes Q awkward or easy

The Q is awkward because the tail is a decorative addition that has no equivalent in the other letters. The lowercase q is also awkward because it shares the bowl with d and p and must look as though it belongs to the same family.

Variations

In Fraktur q is a bowl with a descending stem and sometimes a small hook at the bottom. Textura capital Q is a compact O with a plain tail. Fraktur capital Q can have a flowing tail. Variation within each script is wide, so refer to a specimen for a particular style.

Common mistakes with Old English Q

  • The tail of the capital Q is hidden inside the bowl.

    Let the tail cross the edge of the bowl and extend outward, so it is clearly visible.

  • The lowercase q looks like a g.

    Draw a straight stem with no loop, so the descender is a simple line and not a closed loop.

  • The bowl of the q is heavier than the stem.

    Even out the weight, drawing both with the full width of the nib.

Ideas for Old English Q

Q is a distinctive initial for names like Quinn, Queenie or Quentin, and for brand names like Quarry or Quill. Few people practise it, so a well-drawn gothic Q makes a memorable monogram and is a good test of the full range of your pen skills.

Printable Old English Q sheet

Trace the outlines, then fill the empty rows with your own letters.

Old English letter Q q Name: ____________________ · coolletteringgenerator.com

Old English Q you can copy and paste

Both the capital Q and the lowercase q have normal mathematical Fraktur forms. Fraktur: 𝔔 (U+1D514) and 𝔮 (U+1D52E). Bold Fraktur: 𝕼 (U+1D57C) and 𝖖 (U+1D596).

Old English Q: questions

Is Q hard to draw in blackletter?
The bowl is easy if you have practised O, but the tail needs attention. Keep it short, diagonal and crossing the bowl at the lower right. Practise the tail as a separate stroke before attaching it. A few pages of tails alone will make the full letter come easily.
Does blackletter Q always have a tail?
In nearly all capital forms yes, since the tail separates it from O. The tail can be straight, curved, or form a loop depending on the style. Lowercase q has a descender instead, which acts as its identifying feature. Some Textura alphabets have a plainer tail than Fraktur ones, so choose one model and follow it.
Why does my q look like a g?
The g has a lower loop, while the q has a simple straight stem. Remove the loop and bring the stem to the descender line with a flat cut. Also check that the bowl is on the left of the stem.

Keep going