Fun fact: It was designed for comfortable use by English, French, and Spanish speakers. Since 1955, the phonetic alphabet has become more standardised and widely adopted, forming what we now know as the NATO phonetic alphabet. Much of the original ICAO list is the same today-which is why code words like “foxtrot” and “yankee” will bring to mind probably every war film you’ve ever seen. After this, the concept was adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), and was used until the end of World War II. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) was the first official body to create a formal phonetic list of words in the 1920s. So that’s what a phonetic alphabet is, but where does NATO come in? Here’s a quick history lesson. Okay, what is the NATO phonetic alphabet?

Or any other industry where you have to take down and/or spell out information like addresses and names verbally, you (or your employees) should know the phonetic alphabet! Who should care about the phonetic alphabet? But that’s not all it can be used for!Ĭontact centres and businesses providing customer-facing solutions can also benefit from the clarity that a phonetic alphabet gives you.Īs you can imagine, mistakes in spelling are a pretty frequent occurrence in telephone communications, so the phonetic alphabet can help you avoid situations where you’re making a customer repeat themselves. You’ve probably seen movies or TV shows where the NATO alphabet is used in military situations and other circumstances where accuracy is essential. The rationale for a spelling alphabet is to make oral communications easier and prevent confusion where letters sound similar (like “D” and “E,” or “K” and “A”). When spoken aloud, these code words represent the letters they are assigned to, indicating what they sound like. So, what is a phonetic alphabet, why do you need it, and how can a contact centre team best use it? DefinitionĮssentially, a phonetic alphabet is a list of 26 words, one for every letter of the alphabet. It’s honestly pretty fascinating, and this guide will be a deep dive into the NATO phonetic alphabet, its origins, and how it’s used today. If you and your customers have to exchange information on the phone regularly (like addresses, names, and so on), then being familiar with the phonetic alphabet is absolutely crucial. It’s been around since 1955, and even though most of us have no idea what the ABCs stand for (I only remember “C as in Charlie,” for some reason) it’s still a huge resource for contact centre teams and any business that works in telephone communications. The NATO alphabet is a universal spelling alphabet, and probably the most well-known alphabet in the world. If you’ve ever watched this scene in Friends, you probably get why we need to have a universal phonetic alphabet. “ P as in Phoebe, H as in Hoebe, O as in Oebe, E as in Ebe, B as in Bebe, and E as in…’ello there, mate!”

Spelling alphabet british english