Helvetica

I wasn't sure how I could do research on typography without mentioning the ever influential and ever popular Helvetica.

Helvetica was originally created by Swiss typeface designer Max Miedinger along with Eduard Hoffmann in 1957. Originally called Neue Haas Grotesk, it was designed to be a neutral typeface that had great clarity, no intrinsic meaning in its form and could be used on a wide variety of signage. The typeface was later named Helvetica, which was the original Latin word for Swiss.

Since it's creation in the 1950's, it's had many variations and reworkings created. To name a few; Helvetica Light, Helvetica Compressed and Helvetica Neue. It was also rated number one on FontShop Germany's list of 'The Best Fonts of All Time'.