Swash

A swash is an elaborated, extended, or decorative version of a letter — typically featuring exaggerated flourishes on the entry or exit strokes. Swash variants are most common in italic and display typefaces, adding calligraphic drama to capitals and occasional lowercase letters. They take their name from a historical printing term for the curling, decorative strokes on certain metal type designs.

Swash characters are accessed through OpenType features, typically the swsh or cswh (contextual swash) feature tags. Many elegant script and display fonts on Google Fonts include swash variants that can transform a headline from professional to extraordinary.

/* Enable swash characters via font-feature-settings */
.swash-heading {
  font-family: 'Cormorant Garamond', serif;
  font-style: italic;
  font-feature-settings: "swsh" 1;
}

/* Using the font-variant shorthand where supported */
.swash-modern {
  font-family: 'EB Garamond', serif;
  font-style: italic;
  font-variant-alternates: swash(1);
}

/* Script and calligraphic fonts inherently carry swash-like characteristics */
.calligraphic {
  font-family: 'Great Vibes', cursive;
  font-size: 48px;
  /* Entry and exit strokes are naturally swash-like in this font */
}

Swashes work best at display sizes (36px and above) where their detail can be appreciated rather than muddied by the pixel grid. In body text, swash characters can create awkward spacing or visual noise, disrupting the reading flow that regular letterforms are optimized to maintain.

The key to using swash characters effectively is restraint. A swash initial capital at the start of a chapter drop cap, or a swash italic in a magazine-style callout, adds sophistication. Enabling swashes on every letter in a long headline crosses from elegant to overwrought. Fonts like Dancing Script and Great Vibes encode a swash-like character into every letter by default, which is why they're best used for short decorative text rather than extended passages.

In variable fonts, swash-like qualities can sometimes be accessed through custom axes. Some contemporary type designs include an axis for ornamental stroke extension, allowing continuous control over how dramatic the decorative elements appear — from barely noticeable to full calligraphic flourish. This represents an evolution of the traditional binary on/off OpenType swash feature into something far more nuanced and design-system-friendly.