Which script reform is credited with improving legibility of medieval manuscripts?

• A. Gothic textura
• B. Fraktur
• C. Caroline minuscule
• D. Uncial script

Answer: (C)

The move that boosted legibility in medieval manuscripts was a deliberate reform that produced a clear, uniform lowercase script: Caroline minuscule. Developed during Charlemagne’s reign, it was designed to be easy to read and easy to copy across the empire. Scribes standardized letter shapes, set regular proportions, and introduced distinct, consistent forms for the ascenders and descenders, along with more obvious word separation. This combination made texts faster to read and easier to transmit accurately, which is why this script became the model for scribal practice and eventually helped shape the later development of the modern lowercase alphabet.

Gothic textura, while widespread in later centuries, is a denser, more angular style that was not a legibility reform but a stylistic choice for durable, compact text. Uncial is older and more rounded, but it precedes the Carolingian reform and was superseded by minuscule forms. Fraktur is a later Gothic variant used in early modern print, not a medieval reform aimed at improving legibility.