Hermann Zapf, whose calling in life — “to create beautiful letters,” as one of his students put it — found expression in lush, steady-handed calligraphy and in subtly inventive typefaces that have brought words to readers on paper, on signposts, on monuments and on computer screens for more than half a century, died on Thursday at his home in Darmstadt, Germany. He was 96.

Jerry Kelly, a leading American typographer, calligrapher and type designer who was a friend and former student of Mr. Zapf, confirmed the death.

In the world of type design — an exacting, arcane craft that is underappreciated for its impact on how people communicate and receive communication — Mr. Zapf (pronounced DZAHFF) was a giant. Prolific and versatile, he created around 200 typefaces in numerous alphabets, including Latin, Cyrillic, Arabic and Cherokee, spanning the eras of metal typesetting, phototypesetting and digital typesetting. His typefaces include:

¶ Palatino, his breakthrough font, a much-copied classical Roman design adapted for the 20th century. It is available on Microsoft Word and from Linotype and other sources and is being used by Abercrombie & Fitch for its corporate logo.

¶ Optima, a revolutionary font that melded the thick and thin strokes of a traditional typeface within a sans serif design. Its capital letters are used for the names inscribed on the Maya Lin-designed Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, and its bold version was used for John McCain’s presidential campaign posters and buttons and continues to be used by the Estée Lauder cosmetics company on its packaging.