Zen Kurenaido
Zen Kurenaido is a free handwriting font for Japanese by Yoshimichi Ohira, on Google Fonts since 2021. It draws 6,682 kanji and the kana, and the English alphabet, in one weight (400).
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風
01 / Characters
Hiragana, katakana and kanji
The characters Japanese readers learn first, set in Zen Kurenaido.
Hiragana ひらがな
Each with its sound
- あa
- いi
- うu
- えe
- おo
- かka
- きki
- くku
- けke
- こko
- さsa
- しshi
- すsu
- せse
- そso
- たta
- ちchi
- つtsu
- てte
- とto
- なna
- にni
- ぬnu
- ねne
- のno
- はha
- ひhi
- ふfu
- へhe
- ほho
- まma
- みmi
- むmu
- めme
- もmo
- やya
- ゆyu
- よyo
- らra
- りri
- るru
- れre
- ろro
- わwa
- をwo
- んn
Katakana カタカナ
Each with its sound
- アa
- イi
- ウu
- エe
- オo
- カka
- キki
- クku
- ケke
- コko
- サsa
- シshi
- スsu
- セse
- ソso
- タta
- チchi
- ツtsu
- テte
- トto
- ナna
- ニni
- ヌnu
- ネne
- ノno
- ハha
- ヒhi
- フfu
- ヘhe
- ホho
- マma
- ミmi
- ムmu
- メme
- モmo
- ヤya
- ユyu
- ヨyo
- ラra
- リri
- ルru
- レre
- ロro
- ワwa
- ヲwo
- ンn
Kanji 漢字
Each with its meaning
- 永eternity
- 日sun
- 月moon
- 火fire
- 水water
- 木tree
- 金gold
- 土earth
- 山mountain
- 川river
- 雨rain
- 花flower
- 空sky
- 海sea
- 風wind
- 森forest
- 夢dream
- 愛love
- 心heart
- 道way
- 書write
- 字letter
- 光light
- 春spring
- 夏summer
- 秋autumn
- 冬winter
- 東east
- 京capital
- 語language
02 / Text
As running text
The opening of Miyazawa Kenji’s The Polano Square.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。
03 / Facts
What it covers
- Kanji
- 6,682
- More than the 6,355 of JIS levels 1 and 2, the standard set
- Kana
- 182
- Hiragana and katakana, with their voiced and small forms
- Weights
- 1
- One weight, Regular (400)
- Vertical text
- Yes
- Vertical forms of its own, OpenType’s vert
- Font file
- 4.1 MB
- Its Regular: Google serves it in slices
- Licence
- OFL 1.1
- Free for commercial use
Designed by Yoshimichi Ohira. On Google Fonts since 2021, under the SIL Open Font License 1.1.
LatinIt draws the English alphabet too, as in its name:Zen KurenaidoFonts with Latin like it →
05 / Questions
Questions about Zen Kurenaido
Answered from its licence and its font file, and each app’s own font list
Is Zen Kurenaido free for commercial use?
Yes. Zen Kurenaido is under the SIL Open Font License 1.1 , which allows commercial use at any scale: print, websites, apps, videos and logos, for clients and in products. What it forbids is selling the font file on its own.
How do I download and install Zen Kurenaido?
FontKind doesn’t host Zen Kurenaido’s files: it comes free from Google Fonts . On its page there, choose Get font, then Download all, and unzip the file: it holds a single font file. On Windows or a Mac, double-click each font file and choose Install, then restart any app that was open.
Does Zen Kurenaido have kanji?
Yes: Zen Kurenaido draws 6,682 kanji, with the hiragana and katakana. That is more than the 6,355 of JIS levels 1 and 2, the standard set for Japanese text.
How do I use Zen Kurenaido on a website?
Through Google Fonts: its stylesheet cuts Zen Kurenaido into about a hundred small files by character, and a browser downloads only those holding the characters a page shows, never the whole 4.1 MB Regular file. To host it yourself, cut it down to the characters your pages use, a step called subsetting, and serve it as WOFF2: the SIL Open Font License allows that, and as Zen Kurenaido reserves no name, your copy may keep it.
Can Zen Kurenaido set vertical text?
Yes: Zen Kurenaido’s file has vertical forms, the OpenType vert feature, so in a vertical line its commas, full stops and brackets, and its small kana, turn and move as they should. On a web page, CSS writing-mode: vertical-rl sets a block vertically; Word, InDesign and Illustrator have vertical text of their own.
Can I use Zen Kurenaido in a game or an app?
Yes. The SIL Open Font License lets you build Zen Kurenaido into a game, an app or an e-book, sold or free, with no separate licence to buy, as many paid fonts require. Ship its licence with the font files, and don’t sell the font on its own.
Is Zen Kurenaido in Microsoft Word?
Not until you install it: Zen Kurenaido isn’t one of Microsoft 365’s cloud fonts. Installed, it is in Word’s font menu and PowerPoint’s. For someone who hasn’t installed it, turn on Embed fonts in the file in Word’s save options: its licence allows that.
Is Zen Kurenaido in Google Docs?
Most likely. Search for Zen Kurenaido under More fonts in the font menu of Docs; added there, it is in Sheets and Slides too.
Is Zen Kurenaido in Figma?
Yes: Zen Kurenaido is in Figma’s font menu, in the browser and the desktop app, with nothing to install.
How many weights does Zen Kurenaido have?
Zen Kurenaido comes in one weight, Regular (400). Ask for bold and most apps thicken the letters themselves: a faux bold, not a drawn one.
Does Zen Kurenaido have English letters?
Yes: Zen Kurenaido draws all 52 letters of the English alphabet, so a line that mixes Japanese and English can stay in one font.
Who designed Zen Kurenaido?
Zen Kurenaido was designed by Yoshimichi Ohira. It has been on Google Fonts since October 2021.
What fonts are similar to Zen Kurenaido?
The most used Japanese handwriting fonts besides Zen Kurenaido are Klee One, Yusei Magic and Yomogi. See every Handwriting font for Japanese.