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Incomplete implementation of U+0620 KASHMIRI YEH fix across Noto Arabic fonts #278

@aynfr

Description

@aynfr

Incomplete implementation of U+0620 KASHMIRI YEH fix across Noto Arabic fonts

Summary

Issue #245 was closed after implementing the tailed form of U+0620 KASHMIRI YEH (without the circle) as per Unicode consensus. However, the fix appears to have been applied only to Noto Naskh Arabic on Google Fonts, while other Noto Arabic fonts still display the old incorrect form with the circle.

Affected Fonts

The following fonts on Google Fonts still show the incorrect form (with circle) for U+0620 in isolated and final positions:

  • Noto Sans Arabic
  • Noto Kufi Arabic
  • Noto Serif Arabic
  • (possibly others in the Noto Arabic family)

Expected Behavior

According to UTC #180-C23 and the research in Report on Kashmiri Yeh, all Noto Arabic fonts should render U+0620 with a half-length tail (similar to the form now used in Noto Naskh Arabic) rather than with a circle underneath.

Current Behavior

As of February 2026 on Google Fonts:

Updated fonts (showing correct tailed form):

  • Noto Naskh Arabic

Not updated fonts (still showing incorrect circle form):

  • Noto Sans Arabic
  • Noto Kufi Arabic
  • Noto Serif Arabic
  • (and potentially other variants)

Steps to Reproduce

  1. Go to Google Fonts
  2. Select any of the affected fonts (e.g., Noto Sans Arabic, Noto Kufi Arabic)
  3. Type the character ؠ (U+0620) in the preview
  4. Observe that it still renders with a circle underneath instead of a half-tail

For comparison:
5. Switch to Noto Naskh Arabic.
6. Type the same character ؠ (U+0620)
7. Observe that these fonts correctly show the tailed form without the circle

Test String

ؠ
كؠ

(U+0620 in isolated form, and U+0643 U+0620 showing it in final form)

Additional Context

The Unicode Consortium has agreed that the circle form was a mistake based on historical evidence. The tailed form should be the default across all fonts to ensure proper rendering for Kashmiri users. Since this fix has already been implemented in some Noto Arabic fonts (Naskh), it seems the implementation was incomplete rather than requiring new design work.

Screenshot from Google Fonts showing updated fonts (highlighted in green) and not updated fonts (highlighted in orange-red)

Image

Request

Please update all remaining Noto Arabic fonts on Google Fonts to use the correct tailed form of U+0620 KASHMIRI YEH in isolated and final positions, consistent with the fix already applied to Noto Naskh Arabic.

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