(1) seal script: there was a big seal before the small seal. As early as more than 60 years ago, symbols carved on pottery and pictures depicting objects had the embryonic form of words, and then in the long development, hieroglyphics (pictures) were produced. Three thousand years ago, the characters carved on tortoise shell bones in Shang Dynasty, that is, "Oracle Bone Inscriptions" calligraphy, were thin and straight.
From the unearthed Oracle Bone Inscriptions, jade tablets and pottery tablets, we can get a glimpse of the characteristics of writing with brush at that time. Inscriptions cast on bronze wares such as bells, ding, money and weapons in Shang and Zhou Dynasties, called "Bronze inscriptions" or "Zhong Dingwen", became more and more neat and varied, and were carved on the reed in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.
In 22 1 BC, Qin Shihuang unified China, abolished six foreign languages and simplified the unified font, which was later called "Xiao Zhuan". The font is slightly long and neat, and the strokes are round and beautiful.
(2) Official script: It is said that official script was compiled by Cheng Miao who was not in the prison of Qin Dynasty. By eliminating complexity and simplifying, the font becomes round and square, and the strokes become straight. Changing "Lian Bi" into "broken pen" and changing lines into strokes will make it easier to write. This kind of writing is popular among "officials" (small officials at lower levels), so it is called official script. In the Han Dynasty, the foundation of regular script was laid. The structure of official script is flat, neat and exquisite. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, stippling was beautified as upward provocation to varying degrees, which enhanced the aesthetic feeling of the plastic arts of calligraphy, with diverse styles and greatly improved the artistic appreciation value.
(3) Regular script: Regular script, also known as "official script" and "original script", evolved from official script and became more simplified. The font is changed from flat to square, the strokes are simplified, horizontal and vertical, and it is characterized by regularity and neatness. Therefore, it is called regular script, which has been used ever since. Regular script prevailed in the Six Dynasties and flourished in the Tang Dynasty.
(4) Running script: Running script is a quick writing of regular script. It is said that it began in the Han Dynasty, and there was no neat regular script and no draft of cursive script. Regular script or running script close to regular script is called "running script", and cursive script or running script close to cursive script is called "running script".
(5) Cursive script: Cursive script is a kind of cursive script that connects characters with dots according to certain rules. The structure is simple, it can be borrowed and used at the same time, and it is not free to scribble. The feature of cursive script is that the artistic appreciation value is greater than the practical value. Generally speaking, it can be divided into two types: Cao Zhang and Cao Cao. Cao Zhang is a simple and quick writing style of official script, and each word is independent and unrelated. Cao Cao is a quick writing style of regular script, and the strokes between the upper and lower parts are often implicated.