Tool for writing/translating Wim Crouwel's experimental New Alphabet typography, created in 1967 to adapt to the technological constraints of the screens and machines of the time.
New Alphabet by Crouwel - dCode
Tag(s) : Symbol Substitution
dCode is free and its tools are a valuable help in games, maths, geocaching, puzzles and problems to solve every day!
A suggestion ? a feedback ? a bug ? an idea ? Write to dCode!
New Alphabet by Crouwel
New Alphabet Decoder
New Alphabet Encoder
Answers to Questions (FAQ)
What is Crouwel's New Alphabet? (Definition)
New Alphabet is an alternative alphabet created to adapt to the technical limitations of CRT screens that had difficulty representing curved or diagonal shapes. The letters and numbers are therefore composed only of straight, vertical and horizontal lines.
How to encode using New Alphabet?
This is not strictly speaking an encoding but a change in the writing of the alphabet. The new characters replacing A-Z are:
| A | .png) | B | .png) | C | .png) | D | .png) | E | .png) | F | .png) | G | .png) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H | .png) | I | .png) | J | .png) | K | .png) | L | .png) | M | .png) | N | .png) |
| O | .png) | P | .png) | Q | .png) | R | .png) | S | .png) | T | .png) | U | .png) |
| V | .png) | W | .png) | X | .png) | Y | .png) | Z | .png) | ||||
| dCode.fr | |||||||||||||
The numbers also have their replacements: :
| 0 | .png) | 1 | .png) | 2 | .png) | 3 | .png) | 4 | .png) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | .png) | 6 | .png) | 7 | .png) | 8 | .png) | 9 | .png) |
| dCode.fr | |||||||||
Example: ALPHABET is written
How to decode the New Alphabet?
Here again, this is not strictly speaking a decoding but an adapted reading, replacing the alphanumeric characters with those of the new alphabet.
Example: is translated 1967
How to recognize a New Alphabet ciphertext? (Identification)
A message written in New Alphabet contains only straight vertical or horizontal lines and right angles. The characters are all composed of a single piece except exceptionally, a point or a horizontal bar can be displayed in addition above or above the character.
Some letters have commonalities or very strong resemblances with their counterparts in the original Latin alphabet commonly represented on 7-segment displays.
New Alphabet was among 23 digital typefaces/fonts acquired by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in January 2011 for its Architecture and Design Collection and showcased in exhibition Standard Deviations.
When was New Alphabet invented?
New Alphabet was designed by Dutch graphic designer Wim Crouwel in 1967
Source code
dCode retains ownership of the "New Alphabet by Crouwel" source code. Except explicit open source licence (indicated Creative Commons / free), the "New Alphabet by Crouwel" algorithm, the applet or snippet (converter, solver, encryption / decryption, encoding / decoding, ciphering / deciphering, breaker, translator), or the "New Alphabet by Crouwel" functions (calculate, convert, solve, decrypt / encrypt, decipher / cipher, decode / encode, translate) written in any informatic language (Python, Java, PHP, C#, Javascript, Matlab, etc.) and all data download, script, or API access for "New Alphabet by Crouwel" are not public, same for offline use on PC, mobile, tablet, iPhone or Android app!
Reminder : dCode is free to use.
Cite dCode
The copy-paste of the page "New Alphabet by Crouwel" or any of its results, is allowed (even for commercial purposes) as long as you credit dCode!
Exporting results as a .csv or .txt file is free by clicking on the export icon
Cite as source (bibliography):
New Alphabet by Crouwel on dCode.fr [online website], retrieved on 2025-04-02,
