Menbere

Designed by Aleme Tadesse, Sorkin Type, Eben Sorkin

7 weights • Version 1 • On Google Fonts since 2025 • Popularity #1721

Quick Summary

7

Styles

100-700

Weight Range

1

Variable axis

4

Languages / Subsets

Category
sans-serif
Best for
textdisplay
Variable axes
Weight
Scripts
Latin, Vietnamese
Origin
Washington, United States
License
SIL Open Font License
Last updated
Jun 25, 2025

© 2022 The Menbere Project Authors

The quick brown fox

32px

About Menbere Fonts

Menbere is an Ethiopic font with a Latin matched to it. Aleme Tadesse designed Menbere with assistance from Eben Sorkin for the Latin. It is publishing by Sorkin Type Co. While contemporary in feeling, Menbere avoids being influenced by the Latin script. In the design of Menbere, Aleme judiciously modernizes traditional Ethiopic using low-contrast strokes that retain traditional gestures. Due to its multiple weights, and formal style, Menbere is an excellent choice for use in corporate design, both in print and on screen as well as UI and wayfinding. Menbere is also well suited to mixed script typesetting.

Menbere is named after Alame’s mother. “Menbere” means “seat of honor”. Menbere uses different word spaces for texts set in Ge’ez derived languages vs those in Latin for additional ease in reading with the Ethiopic script benefiting from a more expansive word space. All Ge’ez script derived languages are covered including Amharic, Tigrinya, Tigre, Bilen, and Harari.

To contribute, see github.com/SorkinType/Menbere.

Who Designed Menbere?

All designers

Aleme has designed "Menbere," a versatile five-weight typeface, and "Nigus," which artfully mimics traditional church manuscript writing. In addition to designing typefaces he is a full-time graphic designer, printer, painter, and painting instructor. He runs his own printing and graphic design company. He also has an MA in Architecture taken in Russia. His current focus is on watercolor creations, capturing the essence of Washington, DC, through his keen eye and delicate brushwork. These watercolors have become iconic, celebrated on postcards and cherished by locals and tourists alike.

dcwatercolor.com | beteseb.org

Sorkin Type makes typefaces that balance a concern for aesthetics, expression, and utility. It was founded in 2011.

sorkintype.com | Twitter

Eben Sorkin enjoys making type with definite personalities optimized for specific typographic purposes. He has been designing type since 2009.

Twitter

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