In**** a **** script**** (commonly shortened to**** right to**** left**** or**** abbreviated RTL,**** RL****-TB**** or**** Role****), writing starts**** from**** the right of**** the page**** and continues to**** the left****,**** proceeding**** from**** top to**** bottom**** for new lines.**** Arabic and Hebrew are the most widespread RTL writing systems in modern times. Right-to****-left**** can also**** refer to**** **** (TB-RL**** or**** vertical****)**** scripts of**** tradition,**** such**** as**** Chinese,**** Japanese****,**** and Korean****,**** though**** in**** modern**** times they**** are also**** commonly**** written (with lines going from**** top to**** bottom****). Books designed for predominantly vertical TBRL text open in the same direction as those for RTL horizontal text: the spine is on the right and pages are numbered from right to left. These scripts can be contrasted with many common modern writing systems, where writing starts from the left of the page and continues to the right. The Arabic script is mostly but not exclusively right-to-left; mathematical expressions, numeric dates and numbers bearing units are embedded from left to right.

Uses

Hebrew and Arabic are the most widespread RTL writing systems in modern times. As usage of the Arabic script spread, the repertoire of 28 characters used to write the Arabic language was supplemented to accommodate the sounds of many other languages such as Kashmiri, Pashto, etc. While the Hebrew alphabet is used to write the Hebrew language, it is also used to write other Jewish languages such as Yiddish and Ladino. Syriac and Mandaean (Mandaic) scripts are derived from Aramaic and are written RTL. Samaritan is similar, but developed from Proto-Hebrew rather than Aramaic. Many other ancient and historic scripts derived from Aramaic inherited its right-to-left direction. Several languages have both Arabic RTL and non-Arabic LTR writing systems. For example, Sindhi is commonly written in Arabic and Devanagari scripts, and a number of others have been used. Kurdish may be written in the Arabic or Latin script. Thaana appeared around 1600 CE. Most modern scripts are LTR, but Niko (1949), Mende Kikakui (19th century), Adlam (1980s) and Hanifi Rohingya (1980s) were created in modern times and are RTL. Ancient examples of text using alphabets such as Phoenician, Greek, or Old Italic may exist variously in left-to-right, right-to-left, or boustrophedon order; therefore, it is not always possible to classify some ancient writing systems as purely RTL or LTR.

Computing support

Right-to-left, top-to-bottom text is supported in common computer software. Often, this support must be explicitly enabled. Right-to-left text can be mixed with left-to-right text in bi-directional text.

List of RTL scripts

Examples of right-to-left scripts (with ISO 15924 codes in brackets) are:

Current scripts

Ancient scripts