As we look at the calendar today, we are faced with 11/11/11. Some parts of the world list the day first and some list the month first. Today, it is the same for everyone. In the United States, it is also the Veteran’s Day holiday. Finding the appropriate font for such a day was tough, but I think I have found a great font that you’ll all love.

Before we get to the font, let’s look at the name of the font and why it is significant for today. The word “ensign” has several meanings. It can reference the flag or banner flown at the stern or gaff of a ship. An ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the navy. Being Veteran’s Day, I thought it was only appropriate to pick a name with a connection to the armed forces. I should also mention that yesterday was the 236th birthday of the US Marines. Semper Fi! I celebrated their birthday last night with a Pavuvu Pepper in my dinner.

The name ensign caught my mind because one of the ways the holiday is being observed in the United States is by holding a college basketball game on the deck of an active aircraft carrier. As I am a huge college basketball fan, I was trying to find something Naval in my search for a font.

In many commercials, you hear the phrase “But wait, there’s more” and that is very appropriate for this font. Ensign Flandry is the name of a book in the popular science fiction series from author Poul Anderson. The central character in the books is Dominic Flandry, Agent of Imperial Terra. So while the font has a naval theme at first glance, it is really named for a science fiction character.

Now that I have taken a long and winding road to today’s font, let’s talk type. Once again, today’s font family is Ensign Flandry and it contains eight fonts in total. You’ll find Regular, Bold, Italic, Laser, Laser Italic, Shadow, Shadow Italic and Laser Shadow Italic. They definitely have a science fiction theme and could be the perfect choice for projects geared towards technology.

What do you think of this font family? Post a message on the Graphics Unleashed Facebook page and share your thoughts or post a graphic you’ve created with the fonts. Do you have any friends that like free fonts? Of course you do so could you please do us a favor and suggested they become fans of the Graphics Unleashed Facebook page. That way they can enjoy the fonts we feature.

If you’ve missed some fonts, don’t forget to visit Fonts Unleashed where we keep a list of all of the fonts available for download.