A QWERTY keyboard is the basic English-language keyboard layout. On a QWERTY keyboard, the letters are organized in an order that's meant to increase typing speed.
The first thing to know about a QWERTY keyboard is obvious from its name: the top row of letters, from left to right, begins with QWERTY and continues with UIOP. This layout was invented in the 1870s by the man who helped invent the typewriter. The original ABCDE arrangement didn't work well — it caused the keys to jam frequently — but QWERTY improved speed and accuracy by encouraging typists to alternate hands when typing.