Typing 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 on macOS: a tiny Unicode italic script

Date: 2026-02-12
Host: macOS
Goal: Convert normal text into Unicode Mathematical Sans-Serif Italic (e.g. Everything → 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨)

This document shows how to create a small local script on macOS that converts normal text into Unicode Mathematical Sans‑Serif Italic. This is Unicode substitution (not font styling). It’s useful for headings or emphasis in posts and chats, but it’s not ideal for accessibility or searching.

What it looks like

Plain:

Everything looks cooler now

Converted:

𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘯𝘰𝘸

1) Create the script

Create a bin directory if you don’t already have one:

mkdir -p ~/bin

Create the script:

nano ~/bin/italicize.py

Paste this:

#!/usr/bin/env python3
import sys

MAP = str.maketrans(
    "ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz",
    "𝘈𝘉𝘊𝘋𝘌𝘍𝘎𝘏𝘐𝘑𝘒𝘓𝘔𝘕𝘖𝘗𝘘𝘙𝘚𝘛𝘜𝘝𝘞𝘟𝘠𝘡"
    "𝘢𝘣𝘤𝘥𝘦𝘧𝘨𝘩𝘪𝘫𝘬𝘭𝘮𝘯𝘰𝘱𝘲𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘷𝘸𝘹𝘺𝘻"
)

data = sys.stdin.read() if not sys.argv[1:] else " ".join(sys.argv[1:])
print(data.translate(MAP))

Save and exit.

2) Make it executable

chmod +x ~/bin/italicize.py

Ensure ~/bin is in your PATH (zsh default on macOS):

echo 'export PATH="$HOME/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

Verify:

which italicize.py

3) Use it

Convert inline text:

italicize.py Everything looks cooler now

Clipboard → clipboard (best workflow):

pbpaste | italicize.py | pbcopy

Copy text, run the command, then paste the converted output.

4) Optional: one-command shortcut

Add a convenience alias:

echo 'alias ital="pbpaste | italicize.py | pbcopy"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

Workflow:

1. Select text → Cmd+C
2. Run: ital
3. Paste → Cmd+V

Limitations / gotchas

• Unicode look‑alike text, not real styling.
• Some apps/renderers won’t display it correctly.
• Searchability and accessibility may be worse.
• Avoid using in code, logs, or anything you need to grep.

Example

italicize.py "FreeBSD makes everything better"

Output:

𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘉𝘚𝘋 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳