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Short URL: http://scripts.sil.org/Mingzat

Mingzat

Lepcha Unicode font

Lorna Priest, 2011-12-14; 2051 reads

    Introduction
    Conversion
    Keyboarding
    Font
        Modifications
        Rendering Issues
            Graphite
            OpenType
        Supported character ranges
        License
    Downloads
    Support

Introduction

Lepcha script is used by the  Lepcha language of South Asia. Lepcha has been in Unicode since Unicode 5.1.

Mingzat is a Unicode font based on Jason Glavy's  JG Lepcha custom-encoded font. We have used his design and released the font under the SIL Open Font License (OFL) with his generous permission. Most Windows applications provide basic Unicode support. However, because Lepcha is an Indic script, it requires reordering and at this time there is little support for Lepcha on computers. Please see the section on rendering for detailed information.

The name "Mingzat" means "treasure of letters" in the Lepcha language.

Conversion

If you have existing data using the JG Lepcha font and wish to convert your data to Unicode you may use the TECkit mapping file (available from downloads). SILConverters 3.1.1 can be used with this mapping file to convert documents (text or Word) to Unicode.

Keyboarding

Mingzat can be used with any Unicode Lepcha keyboarding program. However, we have included a Keyman keyboard which you will need to download separately (LepchaKeymanKbd.kmp). This Keyman keyboard is based on a phonetic representation of the script. The Keyman program is not an SIL product, and it is not free. You must install Keyman Desktop Lite or Keyman Desktop Professional before you install this keyboard. You can purchase and download Keyman  here. Please read the documentation (welcome.htm) which comes with the keyboard to learn the keyboard sequences.

The Lepcha Unicode Keyman keyboard is distributed under the SIL International X11-style License.

Font

Modifications

• The JG Lepcha font was reencoded for Unicode
• OpenType and Graphite smart positioning rules for conjuncts, combining marks and reordering have been added
• Added U+1C3B..U+1C3E and U+1C4D..1C4F
• Added conjunct for U+1C05 LEPCHA LETTER NGA plus U+1C24 LEPCHA SUBJOINED LETTER YA
• U+1C2B LEPCHA VOWEL SIGN UU has been resized and lowered

Rendering Issues

Lepcha is a complex Indic script which requires reordering. At this time, there is little (or no) support for the Lepcha script in commercial rendering systems.

Mingzat follows the Unicode syllable order: C(.)(R)(Y)(V)(F)(^). This translates into Consonant (C) followed by optional nukta (.), followed by optional Ra (R), followed by optional Ya (Y), followed by optional dependent Vowel (V), followed by optional Final consonant sign (F), followed by optional Ran (^). If this structure is followed, and your application supports proper rendering, the font will display them in the correct order. See the example nonsense syllable below:

Mingzat is designed to work with Graphite or OpenType advanced font technologies. To take advantage of the advanced typographic capabilities of this font, you must be using applications that provide an adequate level of support for Graphite or OpenType.

Graphite

Any Graphite-enabled application will be able to use the Graphite capabilities in the font. Mingzat has been tested on Windows 7 and Windows XP to work with the following applications:

• WorldPad
•  LibreOffice 3.4.4+
•  OpenOffice 3.2+
• XeTeX

OpenType

Uniscribe does not (yet) support the Lepcha script. Thus, the OpenType capabilities are limited to ICU rendering. Mingzat has been tested on Windows 7 to work with the following applications:

• XeTeX
• InDesign CS5 (support seems fragile)
•  Mozilla Firefox
•  Mozilla Thunderbird

Additionally, the font does NOT render correctly in any Microsoft application. It also does not render properly in AbiWord 2.8.6 or in Scribus 1.4.0.

Supported character ranges

License

Lepcha glyph design Copyright (c) 2001, GlavyFonts and Copyright (c) 2006 Athinkra, LLC ( http://www.athinkra.com) with Reserved Font Name "JG Lepcha".

OpenType and Graphite code Copyright (c) 2010-2011, SIL International ( http://www.sil.org/) with Reserved Font Name "Mingzat".

Latin glyph design Copyright (c) 1994-2011, SIL International ( http://www.sil.org/), with Reserved Font Names 'SIL' and "Sophia'.

Downloads

Support

As these fonts and utilities are distributed at no cost, we are unable to provide a commercial level of personal technical support. We will, however, try to resolve problems that are reported to us.

We do hope that you will report problems so they can be addressed in future releases. Even if you are not having any specific problems, but have an idea on how this system could be improved, we want to hear your ideas and suggestions.

Please note that these fonts are intended for use by experienced computer users. Installing and using these fonts is not a trivial matter. The most effective technical support is usually provided by an experienced computer user who can personally sit down with you at your computer to troubleshoot the problem.

General troubleshooting information, including frequently asked questions, can be found in the documentation. Additional information is also available on the general Font FAQ page. If that fails to answer your question you can contact us at:

Email:

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1	Inclusion of basic Latin repertoire is provided as a convenience, e.g., for use in menus or for displaying markup in text files; this font is not intended for extensive Latin script use.

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