ROT13 facts for kids
ROT13 (which stands for "rotate by 13 places") is a very simple type of cipher. A cipher is a secret code used to hide messages. It is a special kind of Caesar cipher, which is one of the oldest known codes.
ROT13 works by shifting each letter in a message. You move each letter 13 places forward in the alphabet. For example, the letter 'A' becomes 'N', 'B' becomes 'O', and so on. If you reach the end of the alphabet, you just loop back to the beginning. To decode a message, you simply apply ROT13 again! This makes it easy to use.
This simple code was often used in online discussions. For example, people used it in old internet forums called Usenet. It helped hide things like puzzle answers or spoilers.
Fun with ROT13: Word Games and Online Culture
ROT13 can also be used for fun letter games. Some words can turn into other real words when you apply the ROT13 code to them. This creates interesting pairs of words.
| abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz NOPQRSTUVWXYZABCDEFGHIJKLM |
|
| aha ↔ nun | ant ↔ nag |
| balk ↔ onyx | bar ↔ one |
| barf ↔ ones | be ↔ or |
| bin ↔ ova | ebbs ↔ roof |
| envy ↔ rail | er ↔ re |
| errs ↔ reef | flap ↔ sync |
| fur ↔ she | gel ↔ try |
| gnat ↔ tang | irk ↔ vex |
| clerk ↔ pyrex | purely ↔ cheryl |
| PNG ↔ cat | SHA ↔ fun |
| furby ↔ sheol | terra ↔ green |
The longest known pair of English words that work this way are "abjurer" and "nowhere." Both are 7 letters long. Another 7-letter pair is "chechen" and "purpura." The table on the right shows more examples of these interesting word pairs.
In the early days of the internet, people on a newsgroup called alt.folklore.urban created a special word. This word was "furrfu". It was the ROT13 code for the common saying "sheesh." People started using "furrfu" in 1992. They used it to respond to posts that kept repeating old urban myths. It became a fun way to say "sheesh" without overusing the original word.
See also
In Spanish: ROT13 para niños
