Wanting to transcribe a shorthand entry in an historical personnel history file of a family member. The file entry dates most likely to the 1950s and is likely Gregg shorthand. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

The author is a 71-year-old woman, former homemaker and current church secretary at the time of writing. Tended to use shorthand when noting something about her husband that either wasn't complimentary or might have offended his values or sense of self. The husband was a bit like Hank Hill only more stoic and technical.

It is also possible this is a personal note about herself, but she was not shy about recording hardly anything about herself, so that seems less likely.

Hirano shorthand (Hirano geometric English shorthand) ━ July 22, 2026

Dehumanization is the psychological and social process of denying people’s humanity and treating them as if they were animals or machines. It reduces empathy and can lead to discrimination, violence, and conflict.

According to psychologist Nick Haslam, dehumanization takes two main forms: animalistic dehumanization, which views people as uncivilized animals, and mechanistic dehumanization, which treats them as emotionless machines or tools.

In today’s society, people are increasingly judged by efficiency and numbers, while empathy and independent thinking may be weakened by digital technology. This does not mean that people are becoming less human, but that modern society often makes it harder to express our humanity.

Therefore, activities such as handwriting, reading, the arts, conversation, and spending time in nature are becoming more important than ever for preserving our humanity.

■～cion,～sion,～tion[shn]＝sh　　■is＝s　　■the＝th　　■～cal＝Cross the preceding stroke with “k”.

■and＝nd　　■～cial＝sh　　■pr＝p×2　　■of＝o

■～ing＝Write a short downward-left line immediately to the right of the preceding stroke.

■～’s＝Write "s" slightly above and to the right of the preceding stroke.

■～[ti] ＝Cross the preceding stroke with “t”.　　■them＝thm　　■they＝th+e

■were＝w×2＝wr　　■em～,en～＝Write the next stroke below "e" or immediately to its right.

■can＝k    ■to＝t　　■discrimination→kr＝k×2

■vowel+vowel＝Represent the second vowel with a detached dot.

■com～,con～＝Write the following stroke starting directly below the middle of “k”.

■according to＝Write “t” immediately to the right of “ak”.　　■form＝fom　　■which＝ch

■people＝ppl　　■un～＝Write the next stroke below or immediately to the right of “u”.

■～d,～ed＝Write “d” so that its middle section is positioned immediately to the right of the preceding stroke.

■less＝le　　■today＝tuda　　■are＝r

■im～,in～＝Write the next stroke below or immediately to the right of “i”.　　■～cien＝sh

■number＝num　　■dependent＝dpt　　■think＝nk＝n×2　　■be＝b

■～gy＝Cross the preceding stroke with “j”.　　■this＝ths　　■does＝dz　　■not＝n　　■that＝tha

■become＝bkm　　■but＝b×2　　■our＝r　　■therefore＝thrf　　■such＝sch

■vr ＝The “r” in “vr” can also be written in the reverse direction.　　■time＝tm　　■more＝r×2

■important＝In “important”, the “portant” portion can be represented by “pt” alone.   

■than＝th + a large clockwise circle.　　■ever＝Make “e” oval-shaped.　　■for＝f

■preserve＝The “r” in ”serve" can be written in the reverse direction.

----------------------------------------

While going through some old photos came across a short note from young receptionist to a young me on back of a "standard office reminder" note as was the way back in the day. Just curious as to what it might have said and would appreciate any assistance to interprete please

I'm learning shorthand right now, and it is very frustrating for me. The website I am using for learning it, Unit 1 - Gregg Shorthand, seems to be skipping out on marking the vowels. In the first image, I thought the word was Add. I couldn't figure out it was Aid until giving up and looking at the answer sheet, because the "a" wasn't marked with a line. What am I missing? I need Aid.

The first image is Aid.
The second is the sentence it was found in.
The third is a chart of the markings.

Hello all,

We found this going through some papers from my husband’s family. We are pretty sure it is a memo about an ancestor from the 1930s. can anyone translate?

Hi there, when going through some old things of my grandmas, we found this yearbook and it was signed by her friends from highschool. We are trying to figure out what was written in shorthand, but can’t quite make it out. Hoping someone else knows what it says! Thanks in advance

Say you only have such a writing utensil available. Would the forms be sufficient to read from even if the strokes were all the same width? Or is it that crucial to legibility in Pitman?

We’re not sure this is shorthand but also not sure where else to look! Found at nan’s house and the family have been trying to decode for years. Ignore the biro notes around the page! Thank you!!

Would be grateful for transcription into English.

I have been able to read most of this but I am struggling with the last phrase in the sentence regarding her description of the woman she has met. Would be grateful for your help. This is on a postcard hence no lines. The postcard is a picture of School of Art and Museum Dublin. Thank you.

Hello everyone , in like next 9 to 11 months exams are approaching (exams for getting a job) I want to get in it and change my life ... I have to learn pitman shorthand and I got the instructor book and memorized all consonant but I don't fell confident about moving on next chapter can anyone help (who have completed this book ) that when to proceed and how to extract maximum juice out of it and how studying from this book looks like in broder picture (asking about how things progress) ..... I am willing to put hours daily on this project all i want is to get to the actual sprit of this skill and thoroughly enjoyed it ..... Any comments or suggestions will be helpful and motivating .......

Thank you

​

I'm looking for the best YouTube channel to learn Pitman Shorthand from beginner to advanced level.

I'd prefer a channel that covers everything in order—from basic strokes, vowels, and consonants to phrasing, dictation, and speed building.

If you've learned Pitman shorthand from YouTube, which channel helped you the most and why?

Thanks in advance!

Guys, as much as I been enjoying Roony simplex, I’m migrating a bit more towards forkner. For the past 2-3 days when I do my todo lists and write some things here and there in simplex I think about forkner the whole time. So then I end up writing the same things in forkner. And I for some reason been enjoying it more. I don’t know. Could it be because is based on cursive writing which is what I majorly write with? So with simplex I’ve been writing with pencils. And one day I write in forkner with my fountain pen stub nib with perm black ink and the sentence looked so nice written in forkner. I tried simplex with fountain pen and it was a disaster (for me) lol. Anyways, sorry for this boring post. I just wanted to put this out somewhere. Though here was ok.
Thanks for your time.

I'm learning Stiefografie and I've made my way through most of the Aufbauschrift I. There's one specific aspect that I'm struggling with right now, and it's to switch between making a couple small movements for closely spaced letters and the bigger movements needed to make long connections.

I'm trying to use my fingers for the small precise movements and my lower arm for the bigger ones, but when I start to move my lower arm, my hand always sticks a little to the paper and that makes the line jittery or makes me miss my target point. (I could send a picture to demonstrate if needed.) I've tried holding my hand a little more off the paper, but that feels cramped and tires out my arm muscles pretty quick. If there's a happy medium, I haven't managed to find it.

Any advice? General material on penmanship as it pertains to stenography is also very welcome.

Four amateurish little quatrains dedicated to our very own u/BerylPratt, the doyenne in this case.

As you may all know, Beryl has an unending passion for shorthand. Her immense hard work and rare generosity is evident in her many quality contributions here on the subreddit, and her unique and monumental work on her shorthand websites (1, 2, 3), an extensive treatment of Isaac Pitman's system of shorthand - with much in the way of theoretical and practical instruction and custom materials, a concise dictionary of her own design, and valuable practitioner's advice - and an associated YouTube channel, which is without a doubt the largest and highest quality repository of stenography in use on the web.

Besides her work on shorthand, Beryl is an excellent and creative person, and no doubt a joy to be around. Her long-running blog articles in shorthand and print are excellent in content and very pleasant to read. Her love for knowledge and the world, and her many skills in the arts and crafts, photography, and others, are evident therein and in her other websites (such as Yellow Teddy, another delightful and generous website containing arts, crafts, a pleasant long-running diary, and fun observations), and this is just what I can recall and know of.

Beryl has been nothing short of an inspiration to me and I presume to many others. She is a remarkable individual - skilled, knowledgeable, and so patient, kind, and generous - and I am truly fortunate that by studying this hobby, I encountered her work and then her beautiful person. The world could use a few more like her (though that's a big ask!), and as presumptuous as it may sound, I count her among my models and mentors going forward in my life.

Thank you, Beryl!

---

Ode to the Doyenne

Upon the page your swift and flowing signs
emerge from a nib so lithe and supple,
in wondrous strokes so few one soon divines
a cleverness of wit and morals subtle.

Your deft fingers a mistake scarcely make,
as if it were by divine inspiration;
the speaker's meaning with quick haste you rake
to your pupils' loud and glad exclamation.

Between outlines clear one finds short-forms bright,
with facile phrases scattered in their midst
This treasury sheds on learning a sapient light
A trove of wisdom goodly to enlist.

We give you thanks - our teacher - past all measure,
for guiding us through shorthand's every peril,
your sterling art has been our dearest treasure,
and so we bless your name, our good friend Beryl!

Hello guys. If anyone can help me. How can I write the word “shower” in both forkner and Noory simplex?

Thanks

I'm hoping to get more people interested in shorthand

Starting college in ~40 days. What's a relatively easy to pick up shorthand that I can use to write faster than longhand in that time?

I have been seeing this tag around and I was wondering if it is shorthand, and if it is what does it say??

Pink = Eames Light Line

Green = Cook's Unigraph

Orange = Garber's International Shorthand

Blue = Callendar's Orthic

Purple = Golitschek's English Stiefo