Arabic Calligraphy and the Arabic Language

Arabic is the language of the Quran, and the wish to write the sacred text beautifully gave calligraphy a place of honor that painting held in the West. Over centuries, scribes turned the 28 letters of the alphabet into an art with strict rules of proportion, measured in the rhombic dots made by the tip of a reed pen, the qalam.

Today Arabic calligraphy lives on far beyond manuscripts. You will find it carved in stone on the Dome of the Rock, glazed onto tiles in Isfahan, woven into the Kiswa that covers the Kaaba, lit up on Dubai's Museum of the Future, and painted on canvas by contemporary artists across the Gulf. In 2021 UNESCO recognized the knowledge and skills of Arabic calligraphy as Intangible Cultural Heritage, a nomination shared by 16 Arab countries; see our page on living heritage.

The most rewarding places are great mosques and museums. The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi uses Kufic, Naskh and Thuluth across its courtyards. The Museum of Islamic Art in Doha and the Louvre Abu Dhabi hold superb manuscripts and inscribed objects; see our museums guide. In Makkah, the King Abdulaziz Complex for the Holy Kaaba Kiswa shows calligraphers at work in gold and silver thread, and in Istanbul, the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum is a highlight of any Istanbul stay.

Sharjah, the UAE's cultural capital, has a dedicated Calligraphy Museum in its Heart of Sharjah heritage district, and hosts a well-known calligraphy biennial; see Sharjah travel. For the wider artistic context, read our page on Islamic art and architecture.

The art is thriving. A movement sometimes called calligraffiti blends Arabic letters with street art, and you will find it on walls in Dubai's Alserkal Avenue, Riyadh's JAX District and Doha's Msheireb. Fashion houses, jewelers and perfumers across the Gulf use calligraphic motifs on everything from abayas to bottles, and many of the region's newest buildings, including the Museum of the Future, wrap their facades in poetry. It is one of the most distinctive things a visitor can bring home.