User:ParlorGames/S

The long 'ſ' iſ derived from the old Roman curſive medial ſ, which waſ very ſimilar to an elongated check mark. Eventually it got a more vertical form.

The long 'ſ' iſ ſubject to confuſion with the minuſcule 'f', ſometimeſ even having an 'f'-like nub at itſ middle, but on the left ſide only, in variouſ kindſ of Roman typeface and in blackletter. There waſ no nub in itſ italic typeform, which gave the ſtroke a deſcender curling to the left&mdaſh;not poſſible with the other typeformſ mentioned without kerning.

The nub acquired itſ form in the blackletter ſtyle of writing. What lookſ like one ſtroke waſ actually a wedge pointing downward, whoſe wideſt part waſ at that height (x-height), and capped by a ſecond ſtroke forming an aſcender curling to the right. Thoſe ſtyleſ of writing and their derivativeſ in type deſign had a croſſ-bar at height of the nub for letterſ 'f' and 't', aſ well aſ 'k'. In Roman type, theſe diſappeared except for the one on the medial 'ſ'.

The long 'ſ' waſ uſed in ligatureſ in variouſ languageſ. Three exampleſ were for 'ſi', 'ſſ', and 'ſt', beſideſ the German 'double ſ' 'ß'.

Long 'ſ' fell out of uſe in Roman and italic typography well before the end of the 19th century; in Engliſh the change occurred in the decadeſ before and after 1800, and in the United ſtateſ around 1820. Thiſ may have been ſpurred by the fact that long 'ſ' lookſ ſomewhat like 'f' (in both itſ Roman and italic formſ), whereaſ ſhort 'ſ' did not have the diſadvantage of looking like another letter, making it eaſier to read correctly, eſpecially for people with viſion problemſ.

Long 'ſ' ſurviveſ in German blackletter typefaceſ. The preſent-day German 'double ſ' 'ß' (daſ Eſzett "the eſſ-zed" or ſcharfeſ-eſſ, the ſharp ſ) iſ an atrophied ligature form repreſenting either 'ſz' or 'ſſ' (ſee ß for more). Greek alſo featureſ a normal ſigma 'σ' and a ſpecial terminal form 'ς', which may have ſupported the idea of ſpecialized 'ſ' formſ. In Renaiſſance Europe a ſignificant fraction of the literate claſſ were familiar with Greek.