Facts About Ambigrams

An ambigram is a visual art of a special kind that makes two interpretations or meanings of the same word. There are a lot of references to Ambigrams that have been provided in the novels written by popular author Dan Brown.

1. An Ambigram is a visual art related to writing that has several interpretations. Mostly, these are the visually symmetrical words.
2. The term “Ambigram” was coined by Douglas Hofstadter in 1983. He is best known as the Pulitzer Prize-winning author for his work, “Gödel, Escher, Bach”.
3. According to Hofstadter ambigrams are “calligraphic designs that manage to squeeze in two different readings.” Goal of ambigrams is imbuing a single written form with ambiguity.
4. Ambigrams, when flipped, either remain unchanged or mutate to reveal another hidden meaning.
5. Did you know the mirror ambigrams have an axial symmetry? They can be read through a reflective surface.
6. Did you know Ambigrams can be designed in different languages?
7.  Prior to new terminology, other names were used to address ambigrams. Such as, “vertical palindromes”, “designatures”, “inversions”.
8. The word “Ambigram” was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in March 2011 and in the Merriam-Webster in September 2020.
9. A lot of Ambigrams can be identified as graphic palindromes.
10. Did you know there are a lot of historical references found relating to the Ambigrams? The first Sator square palindrome was found in the ruins of Pompeii. The Sator Square is a two-dimensional word square containing a five-word Latin palindrome.
11. Ambigrams fall under different categories, such as, 180° rotational ambigrams, Mirror ambigrams, Horizontal axis reflection ambigrams, Figure-ground ambigrams, Ambigram tessellations, Chain ambigrams, Spinonyms, Perceptual shift ambigrams, 90° rotational ambigrams, Totem ambigrams, Fractal ambigrams, 3-Dimensional ambigrams and Complex ambigrams.
12. 180° rotational ambigrams are also known as “Half-turn” ambigrams or point reflection ambigrams. These are also known as “upside-down words”. These are 180° rotational symmetrical calligraphies.
13. Did you know there is this interesting site listing amazing Ambigrams by John Langdon?