Learning the NATO Alphabet + How I Memorized ABC Backwards

If you are from the podcast, thank you; if you’re not, you can listen to the full episode here on Spotify and here on Apple.

I decided to learn the NATO spelling alphabet because it was suggested to me. Not to boast, but once I started, I learned it in one day. I don’t think it even took an hour. Part of that speed was because for years, I noticed my Gboard saying words like “Hotel” for H and “Whiskey” for W. I just thought they were random suggestions, but having them imprinted in my mind for so long actually helped me learn the alphabet much faster.

“I realized the podcasters and my keyboard weren’t using random words at all; they were using the NATO spelling alphabet.”

Before I knew about the NATO system, I remember a podcast promoting their Patreon and using “Sierra” for S. I wondered why they would choose that. Wouldn’t it be confusing? Why not use “slap” or “snake”? It was only when I started learning it myself that I had a total enlightenment moment, lol.

One thing I still find confusing is the letter S. Even though experts picked these words, I feel they could have done better because “Sierra” sounds exactly like the musician Ciara when spoken. People might easily confuse the two. Still, what they achieved is super awesome and the history is fascinating.

My Secret to the Alphabet Backwards

As for the letters backwards, I saw a YouTube short of a child reciting them and found it so impressive. One night, while lying awake trying to fall asleep, I decided to pass the time by learning it myself.

I used a trick where I divided most of the letters into groups of three:

• Z, Y, X: I used the word “zygote” to remind me that Y comes first. I then imagined putting a little tail on the Y to turn it into the X.
• W, V: I pictured W as two V’s; when you remove one, you get the next letter, V.
• U, T, S: To remember the correct order “UTS” (not UST!), I thought of a urinary tract infection (UTI) and just replaced the I with S in my mind.
• R, Q, P: I used the word “RAP” and replaced the A with Q.
• L, K, J: I took the phrase “LOL, just kidding” and flipped it to “LOL kidding just” to match the backward letters.

For I, H, G, I just made an “ih” sound in my mind which made the G follow naturally. The rest, F, E, D and C, B, A, were simple enough.

Those were my two adventures. Thanks for reading!

Listen to the Full Episode

If you want to hear more about this adventure, you can find the full podcast episode here:

• Listen on Apple Podcasts
• Listen on Spotify