Do you ever find yourself spelling out names, emails, or part numbers over the phone? For example, whenever I relay my email address over the phone, I have to carefully distinguish M versus N in “MONOMER BIO”. If so, I have a tool for you.
The NATO phonetic alphabet was designed for spelling out letters in noisy situations like military radio. It maps code words to letters from Alpha for A to Zulu for Z. But who actually wants to memorize all those antiquated code words? Foxtrot for F. If you’re like me, you might struggle to quickly come up with alternative words on the spot.
I propose we standardize on a mapping of letters to emojis instead. They have names that are easy to recall. I call it the emoji phonetic alphabet and I made a little web app to accompany it.
To quote Glengarry Glenn Ross’ A-B-C’s
A – Always
B – Be
C – Closing
Always be closing.
Imagine if Alec Baldwin had said
A – 🍎
B – 🍌
C – 🌵
Apple banana cactus.