Writing paper with lines
Ruled paper
(or
lined paper
) is writing paper printed with lines as a guide for handwriting. The lines often are printed with fine width and in light colour and such paper is sometimes called
feint-ruled paper
. Additional vertical lines may provide
margins
, act as
tab stops
or create a grid for plotting data; for example,
graph paper
(
squared paper
or
grid paper
) is divided into squares by horizontal and vertical lines.
History
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]
Initially, paper was ruled by hand, sometimes using templates.
[1]
Scribes could rule their paper using a "hard point," a sharp implement which left embossed lines on the paper without any ink or color,
[2]
or could use "metal point," an implement which left colored marks on the paper, much like a graphite pencil, though various other metals were used.
[3]
On 15 June 1770, English inventor John Tetlow patented a "machine for ruling paper for music and other purposes."
[4]
A later machine was invented by William Orville Hickok in the mid-19th century.
[5]
Generic types
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Lines on ruled paper provide a guide to help users keep their writing or drawing consistent with a predetermined set of rules. The ruling layout is not determined by the
paper size
but by the purpose, style of handwriting or the language used. Many different line layouts support handwriting,
calligraphy
, plotting data on graphs, musical notation or help teach students to write in a particular language or script. The following are common examples:
- Note paper
(or
Writing paper
,
Filler paper
,
Loose leaf paper
,
Binder paper
) is typically used for handwriting and is produced in different layouts and sizes. The layout usually consists of evenly spaced horizontal lines, or
feints
, with vertical lines drawn to indicate
margins
, the middle of the page, or sections of a line.
- Graph paper
has horizontal and vertical lines evenly spaced over the entire page to create a grid of squares and is used for drafting, drawing and plotting graphs. Often every tenth or fifth line is bolded to assist in counting the lines when plotting data.
- Quadrille ruled
paper (or
quad paper
) is similar to graph paper but without the bolded tenth lines. It is useful in mathematics to keep numbers in columns when doing manual operations such as long division or long multiplication, and in spreadsheets or accounts.
- Semi-log ruled
paper is similar to quadrille ruled, except the horizontal lines are spaced according to the
logarithmic scale
instead of being evenly spaced.
[6]
- Log-log ruled
paper is similar to semi-log ruled except that both the horizontal and vertical lines are spaced logarithmically.
- Manuscript paper
is used for handwriting music. The most basic page is laid out with a series of five-line staves, each spanning the width of the page. Any
musical notation
(clefs, bars, notes, etc.) may be written in as desired by the artist. As notebook paper is to the written word, music manuscript paper is to the written score.
Regional standards
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]
| This section
needs expansion
. You can help by
adding to it
.
(
May 2009
)
|
Regional standards exist for ruling layouts, particularly for academic or government clerical purposes.
China
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Elementary students use (
田字格
) Tianzige ruled paper, featuring boxes for individual characters. Sometimes each box is subdivided (vertically, horizontally, diagonally) as reference to aid the writer with the relative proportion and placement of
character components
.
In Taiwan, the Japanese
genk? y?shi
is the main form of rule used by students writing in Mandarin, where it is called
原稿紙
(
pinyin
:
yuang?o zh?
). Students use the thin vertical column to transcribe
Bopomofo
pronunciation.
France
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In order to foster handwriting discipline, a type of ruling known as
Seyes ruling
[7]
is used on paper in schools. Heavy vertical lines are spaced
8 mm (
5
⁄
16
in) apart, beginning
16 mm (
5
⁄
8
in) from the left-hand edge of the page. Three lighter lines are spaced
2 mm (
5
⁄
64
in) apart between each pair of heavy lines.
[8]
These sheets of paper are generally known as
grands carreaux
(large tiles) as opposed to the
petits carreaux
(small tiles) which are 5 × 5mm. Seyes ruled paper is available in single sheets (
copies simples
) or joined double sheets (
copies doubles
), which can be preferred for exams, being easier to handle (a single sheet can be lost, they might be used as a portfolio to store more sheets, etc). Seyes ruled paper is available in A4 size (
grand format
) and in the very school specific 170 × 220 mm format (
petit format
).
Germany
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DIN 16552:1977-04 ("Lines for handwriting") specifies the types of ruled paper to be used by school pupils.
[9]
India
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]
Ruled paper exercise notebooks is available in a variety of semi-standardized formats:
- Double ruled
paper commonly two rules in 15 mm spacing
- Four ruled
paper similar to Handwriting Paper
- Single ruled
paper commonly 8 mm
- Squared maths paper
a 5 mm square grid
Japan
[
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]
Among others,
genk? y?shi
(
原稿用紙
, "manuscript paper") is a kind of paper mainly used for
kanji
script writing, formed vertically with individual boxes for each Chinese character. There is a thin column to the right of the boxes, for transcribing
kana
pronunciation. The sizes can vary for ability levels. It is used across the
East Asian cultural sphere
, for example in Korea for writing proverbs.
New Zealand
[
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]
New Zealand standard for school stationery
, 1984 specifies standards for ruled and unruled paper.
Russia
[
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]
Formats for exercise notebooks are standardised.
[10]
School exercise books must use 8 mm spacing between the lines. Other ruled paper may use 6 mm, 7 mm, 8 mm and 9 mm spacing. The paper for cursive writing uses pairs of lines 4 mm apart, with 8 mm between the pairs. They may also have angled lines at 65 degrees to vertical to provide additional guidance. The lines can have gray, blue, green or purple color. The vertical margin line must have red or orange color.
South Africa
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A4 Ruled/Ledger Paper: 8 mm line height; 2 cm left margin. Top and bottom margins may vary. Often sold as "college exercise books" or "exam pads".
United States
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Ruled paper is available in a variety of semi-standardized formats:
- Gregg ruled
paper has ruling specialized for
stenography
. "Paper should be smooth and lined, dull in finish, with three lines to the inch and a line down the center."
[11]
- Junior legal ruled
paper is found on 5-by-8-inch junior legal pads. This can be equal to narrow or medium rule, depending on the manufacturer.
- Manuscript ruled
paper is used to teach young children how to write. A blank sheet consists of rows of three lines (the space between them depends on the age group being taught) with the middle line in each three-line set being dotted. The
D'Nealian
writing style is a well-known teaching method that makes use of this type of paper ruling. Another educational institution,
A Beka Book
, utilizes this ruling along with a house metaphor (upstairs, downstairs, and basement) to help young children learn where parts of each letter should be written. The usage is similar in concept to the use of the horizontal lines on French Seyes rule paper.
- Medium ruled
(or
college ruled
) paper has
9
⁄
32
in (7.1 mm) spacing between horizontal lines, with a vertical margin drawn about
1
+
1
⁄
4
inches (32 mm) from the left-hand edge of the page. Its use is very common in the United States.
- Narrow ruled
paper has
1
⁄
4
in (
8
⁄
32
in, 6.4 mm) spacing between ruling lines, and is used by those with smaller handwriting or to fit more lines per page.
- Pitman ruled
paper has ruling specialized for
stenography
. It has
1
⁄
2
in (12.7 mm) spacing between ruling lines, with a single margin drawn down the center of the page.
- Wide ruled
(or
legal ruled
) paper has
11
⁄
32
in (8.7 mm) spacing between horizontal lines, with a vertical margin drawn about
1
+
1
⁄
4
inches (32 mm) from the left-hand edge of the page. It is commonly used by American children in grade school, as well as by those with larger handwriting.
United Kingdom
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There appears to be no British Standard. However, the line spacing for adult ruled paper is most commonly 8 mm and squared maths paper has a 5 mm grid.
There is specialist handwriting paper available for primary schools ("Education standard Learn to Write Exercise books") and a British Standard BS4448 ("Specification for school exercise books and papers"). You can find ruled paper at 15 mm spacing and squared maths paper at 10 mm spacing.
Anything above primary school tends to use adult ruling.
See also
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References
[
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]
- ^
Wight, C.
"R - Glossary for the British Library Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts"
.
www.bl.uk
.
Archived
from the original on 16 July 2020
. Retrieved
4 January
2021
.
- ^
Wight, C.
"H - Glossary for the British Library Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts"
.
www.bl.uk
.
Archived
from the original on 25 February 2021
. Retrieved
4 January
2021
.
- ^
Wight, C.
"M - Glossary for the British Library Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts"
.
www.bl.uk
.
Archived
from the original on 4 October 2021
. Retrieved
4 January
2021
.
- ^
Woodcroft, Bennet (1854).
Alphabetical Index of Patentees of Inventions: From March 2, 1617 (14 James I.) to October 1, 1852 (16 Victoriæ)
. Queen's Printing Office.
Archived
from the original on 24 February 2023
. Retrieved
14 August
2021
.
- ^
"Bookbinders' Specialties, Ruling Machine, O-A Striker Machine - The W.O. Hickok Manufacturing Company"
. 26 January 2016. Archived from
the original
on 26 January 2016
. Retrieved
4 January
2021
.
- ^
"Semi-log Plots"
. Archived from
the original
on 20 October 2002
. Retrieved
27 March
2008
.
- ^
"Seyes Ruling (a.k.a. French Ruling)"
. 29 December 2004.
Archived
from the original on 11 July 2011
. Retrieved
26 March
2008
.
- ^
"Clairefontaine Stationery"
.
Archived
from the original on 24 March 2008
. Retrieved
26 March
2008
.
- ^
Kuhn, M.,
International standard paper sizes
Archived
15 January 2008 at the
Wayback Machine
, accessed 1 March 2012
- ^
"Exercise notebook, basic technical requirements (Russian industry standard)"
. p. 8
. Retrieved
25 March
2017
.
- ^
Lamb, Marion Minerva (1961).
Your First Year of Teaching Shorthand and Transcription
. [South-Western publications for business teachers] X95. Cincinnati, Ohio: South-Western Publishing Company. p. 126.
Archived
from the original on 24 February 2023
. Retrieved
19 May
2020
.
External links
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