QWERTY Layout: Why aren’t the letters on the keyboard in alphabetical order?

When the first typewriters were built, the letters were arranged in alphabetical order. However, because typists struck the keys at great speed, the typebars would often get tangled with each other, causing the machine to jam. To reduce the typing speed and solve this problem, the order of the letters was changed—after years of study—so that letters most frequently used together were placed farther apart. This led to a new layout created by Christopher Latham Sholes, which was named “QWERTY,” after the first letters of the top row on the typewriter. From typewriters, it was then carried over to electronic computers in the form we see on keyboards today. Although in modern times keyboards use elastic membranes instead of metal typebars—so typing speed no longer causes jams—the “QWERTY” layout has now become the standard.