Arabic Origins of Cryptology Vol. 3

Series on
Arabic Origins of Cryptology

Volume Three
ibn ad-Durayhim's Treatise

on Cryptanalysis
Series editors
MOHAMMED MRAYATI, Ph. D.
YAHYA MEER ALAM, Ph. D. M. HASSAN at-TAYYAN, Ph. D.
Published by
KFCRIS & KACST
Acknowledgment
The editors of this series greatly appreciate the encouragement they

had from Dr. Yahya Mahmoud Ben Jonayd, Secretary General of
King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, to publish this
Series. We are also in the debt to Dr. Saleh Athel, the president of
King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), for
supporting the project of translating this series to English.
Many thanks to Dr. Daham Ismail Alani, the Secretary General of the
Scientific Council of KACST, for all his efforts to make this
publication possible.
The typing and set up, of this bilingual version of the series, was
realized with skill and dedication by Mr. Ousama Rajab, we offer
hearty thanks to him.
Finally, we would like to re-mention our recognition to the many who
had previously contributed to the Arabic version of this series, and
particularly to Dr. Wathek Shaheed, Dr. Chaker al-Faham, the late
Prof. Rateb an-Naffakh, and Dr. Fouad Seskeen.
Series on
Arabic Origins of Cryptology
Volume 3
Translated by
Said M. al-Asaad
Revised by
Mohammed I. AL-Suwaiyel, Ph. D.
Ibrahim A. Kadi, Ph. D.
Marwan al-Bawab
Contents
List of Figures .…........................................................................... vii

List of Tables ......…….................................................................... viii
Transliterating Arabic words ....................................................... ix
Preface ............................................................................................ xi
Chapter 1: Analytical study of ibn ad-Durayhim’s treatise:

Mift al-Kun z f ' al-Marm z ...................... 1
1.1 Biography of ibn ad-Durayhim ......................…................... 3
1.2 Study and analysis of ibn ad-Durayhim’s treatise ................ 5
1.3 Structure of the treatise .......................................................... 6
1.3.1 Essentials for those practicing cryptanalysis .................. 6
1.3.2 Types of encipherment ................................................... 7
1.3.2.1 Transposition ………............................................... 8
1.3.2.2 Substitution ..........................................…............... 10
1.3.2.3 The augmentation or reduction of the number of
letters ...................................…................................ 21
1.3.2.4 The utilization of cipher devices ............................. 21
1.3.2.5 The replacement of letters by numbers, using the
decimally-weighted numerical alphabet ................. 22
1.3.2.6 The encipherment of letters by using words ........... 25
1.3.2.7 Replacing letters by generic names ......................... 27
1.3.2.8 Using invented symbols or signs to represent
letters ...................................…............................... 29
1.3.3 Morphological introduction ........................................... 30
1.3.4 Algorithm for cryptanalysis ........................................... 33
1.3.5 Two practical examples of cryptanalysis ....................... 33
1.4 Originality of ibn ad-Durayhim .............................................. 34
v
Chapter 2: ibn ad-Durayhim's edited treatise:
Mift al-Kun z f al-Marm z ........................ 35
2.1 Editing methodology ............................................................. 37
2.2 Description of the manuscript ............................................... 38
2.3 Al ibn ad-Durayhim Treatise on Cryptanalysis ................... 47
 Introduction
....................................................................... 50
 Essentials for those practicing cryptanalysis
..................... 52
 Types of encipherment
...................................................... 56
1. On transposition ............................................................ 56
2. On substitution .............................................................. 60
3. On the augmentation or reduction of the number of
letters ............................................................................ 66
4. On the utilization of cipher devices .............................. 66
5. On the replacement of letters using the decimally-
weighted numerical alphabet ...................................... 68
6. On the encipherment of letters by using words ............ 70
7. On enciphering by relationship and diffusion method 76
8. A return to the type on the utilization of cipher devices 80
9. On using invented symbols or signs to represent letters 82
 Morphological introduction
.............................................. 84
 Algorithm for cryptanalysis
.............................................. 98
 Example 1
....................................................................... 102
 Example 2
....................................................................... 116
vi
List of Figures
1.1 ibn ad-Durayhim's circle of letters ............................................. 13

1.2 ibn ad-Durayhim's method of encipherment by substitution of
numbers for letters using the decimally-weighted numerical
alphabet .................................................................................... 23
2.1 A photocopy of the index of the assemblage incorporating

ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise ....................................................... 40
2.2 A photocopy of the first page of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise. .. 41
2.3 A photocopy of a page of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise illustrating
encipherment using the "branched" calligraphy ..................... 42
2.4 A photocopy of a page of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise
demonstrating the encipherment of the first of two examples 43
2.5 A photocopy of a page of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise
demonstrating the encipherment of the second of two
examples ................................................................................. 44
2.6 A photocopy of the encipherment of ibn ad-Durayhim's second
example as set out in ub al-'A ........................................ 45
2.7 A photocopy of the last page of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise ...… 46
vii
List of Tables
1.1 Calligraphs and alphabet size (number of letters) in different

languages, as given by ibn ad-Durayhim ................................ 7
1.2 The alphabetical and numerical-alphabet letters, with their
corresponding cipher alphabets .............................................. 11
1.3 Dual order of letters for some cipher alphabets ....................... 12
1.4 Table of encipherment, following the first method, using the
numerical-alphabet order ......................................................... 14
1.5 Table of encipherment, following the second method, using
the alphabetical order .............................................................. 15
1.6 Table of encipherment as given by ibn ad-Durayhim, following
the third method using the numerical-alphabet order .....….... 17
1.7 Table of encipherment as given by ibn ad-Durayhim, following
the fourth method using the numerical-alphabet order ....….... 18
1.8 Table of the order of letters of both the alphabet and numerical
alphabet in eastern and western Arab worlds, together with an
Indian numerical alphabet .....…............................................. 20
1.9 Table of the letters of the numerical alphabet with
corresponding decimal numerical values ................................ 24
1.10 A list of generic names which match the Arabic alphabet,
used by ibn ad-Durayhim ........................................................ 28
1.11 Table of non-combinable letters as observed by ibn
ad-Durayhim ........................................................................... 32
viii
Transliterating Arabic words
For transliterating Arabic words (names, titles, etc.) we have adopted the
International System for the Transliteration of Arabic characters, devised by the
International Standards Organization (ISO). The system constitutes ISO
Recommendation R233 (December 1961). Given below is this system, with some
additional explanations found to be necessary.
Vowels:
Arabic characters Transliteration Examples
(fat a) a as u in cup.
Short as o in rock,
( amma) u and u in put.
Vowels
as e in red,
(kasra) i and i in big.
As a in last.
Long
Vowels
‫( ڇ‬preceded by ) as oo in moon.
‫( ي‬preceded by ) as ee in sheet.
Consonants:
Arabic
Transliteration Examples
characters
' (e.g. 'amr, 'ibr h m, fu' d, kis ' , t ').
as a in add (e.g. ' dam, qur' n).
‫ة‬ b as b in back.
‫د‬ t as t in tea.
‫س‬ as th in thin.
‫ط‬ as g in logic.
‫ػ‬ (e.g. tim).
‫ؿ‬ (e.g. lid).
‫ك‬ d as d in day.
‫م‬ as th in then.
‫ه‬ r as r in red.
ix
‫ى‬ z as z in zoo.
ً s as s in soon.
ُ as sh in show.
ٓ (e.g. mi r).
ٗ (e.g. ir r).
ٛ (e.g. riq).
ٟ (e.g. fir).
٣ (e.g. Abb s).
٧ (e.g. lib).
٫ f as f in few.
‫ٯ‬ q (e.g. qur' n).
‫ٳ‬ k as k in key.
‫ٷ‬ l as l in led.
‫ٻ‬ m as m in sum.
‫ٿ‬ n as n in sun.
‫څـ‬ h as h in hot.
‫ڇ‬ w as w in wet (e.g. wahab, nawfal).
‫ي‬ Y as ie in orient (e.g. y q t, dunayn r).
Notes:
(t ' marb a): In the absolute state, ignored in transliteration (e.g. mad na); in
the construct state, rendered by (t) (mad nat annab ).
(suk n): Ignored in transliteration.
( adda): rendered by doubling the consonant.
x
Preface
This is the third book of the The Arabic Origins of Cryptology

series, which addresses the cryptological contributions of the Arabs,
and translates the treatises of Arab cryptologists.
An individual book is dedicated to each treatise. The first book was
devoted to the oldest ever found treatise in cryptanalysis, which was
written by the well-known Arab philosopher al-Kind about 1200
years ago. The second book of the series tackles the treatise of ibn
Adl n, while the third book (this one) deals with the treatise of ibn
ad-Durayhim. For the time being, nine books are envisaged, unless
more manuscripts are discovered.
As a matter of fact the first three books of the series are the
translated copy of Volume One of our Arabic book entitled " ilm
at-ta miya wasti r al-mu amm inda al- Arab" (Origins of Arab
Cryptography and Cryptanalysis). This volume has been published in
Damascus in 1987.
In Book One we have allotted a full chapter to study and analyse
cryptology among the Arabs. We hope this will prove useful for
understanding the whole series.
* * *
We have divided this book into two chapters. The first chapter
presents an analytical study of the edited treatise of ibn ad-Durayhim.
It aims at elucidating difficult or vague points, spotting particular
features and, more importantly, highlighting aspects of originality and
innovation in the treatie. It is divided into four sections, the first of
which gives a brief biography of ibn ad-Durayhim.
The second section is a full study and analysis of ibn ad-
Durayhim's Treatise, while the third section delineates its structure.
This section contains a preface, rules in cryptanalysis, and a
conclusion of practical example of live ciphered message, explaining
the steps ibn ad-Durayhim follows in cryptanalysing it.
xi
The fourth section concludes the analysis of the treatise by a
summary exposing the aspects of ibn ad-Durayhim's scientific
originality.
* * *
The second chapter comprises a translation of the original text of
the edited treatise of ibn ad-Durayhim. It opens with a preamble to the
editing methodology adopted (Section 1), which basically conforms to
that commonly used by the scientific community. The treatise is
preceded with a brief description of the manuscript, followed by
sample photocopies of pages from the original (Section 2).
The treatise itself (in Arabic) together with its English translation
represent Section 3, with the English translation on the left-hand
pages, and the original Arabic text on the right-hand pages.
The task of editing the manuscript text was a challenge indeed. No
effort has been spared correcting the mistakes and clearing the
ambiguous. Wherever appropriate, lead-in headings have been added
to designate the different divisions of the treatise itself.
Damascus, December 2003
Dr. Mohammed Mrayati

Dr. Y. Meer Alam Dr. M. H. Tayyan
xii
Chapter 1
Analytical Study of ibn

ad-Durayhim’s treatise:
Miftah al-Kunuz fi 'Idah al-Marmuz
1.1 Biography of ibn ad-Durayhim
He is Al ibn Mu ammad ibn Abd al- Az z, T ad-D n, alias ibn
ad-Durayhim. He was born in Mosul in the month of a b n of the
year AH 712/ AD 1312. Raised there as a wealthy orphan, ibn ad-
Durayhim received his education at the hands of many prominent
scholars of that time. He travelled frequently as a merchant between
Cairo and Damascus, and was appointed as a teacher at the 'Umayyad
Mosque in Damascus. He moved to Egypt in AH 760/ AD 1359 and
was sent by Sult n an-N ir as an emissary to the king of Abyssinia
(now Ethiopia). Going against his will, he reached Qaw , and died
there in the month of afar of the year AH 762/ AD 1361.
He was well-versed in many sciences such as the fiqh (Islamic
jurisprudence), the ad (Prophetic tradition), the modes of reading
the Holy Koran (different phonetic phenomena of the Koranic
language) and interpreting its meanings. In addition, he was famous
for his ingenuity in arithmetic, solving riddles and rebuses, and in
cryptanalysis. He was also knowledgeable in al-'awf q (an old science
dealing with numbers: their special combinations, values and secret
characteristics), and in the letters of the alphabet and their statistical
and phonetical properties. He wrote many works in these fields which
testify to his distinction.
His works
ibn ad-Durayhim was a very prolific writer, despite his short life of
less than fifty years. His works were as diversified as was his
encyclopedic knowledge. We found a - afad to be the most thorough
biographer in listing his works, as he mentioned approximately eighty
of his compilations, most of which were not mentioned in other
published biographical sources. What makes a - afad 's biography of
ibn ad-Durayhim more valuable is the fact that the biographer
explicity stated that the works he listed were handwritten by ibn ad-
Durayhim himself. The following are the titles of some of his books
that are likely to be related to esoteric sciences, and to cryptology in
particular:
3
1. 'iqtin al- u q f 'anw al-'awf q. (On types of al-awf q)
2. ' al-mubham f all al-mutar am.
(On cryptanalysing cipher texts)
3. ' q al-mu b f a - a ran wal-man b. (On chess games)
4. bas al-faw 'id f ar is b al-qaw id. (On languages)
5. baw dir al- ul m f naw dir al- ul m.
(On knowledge and science)
6. ta r f ad-dahr f ta r f az-za r. (On languages)
7. tan ' al-man ir f al-mar ' wal-man ir. (On physics)
8. sabr a - arf f sirr al- arf. (On spirituals)
9. sullam al- ir sa f ilm al-fir sa. (On physiognomy)
10. ar al-as ardiyya f al- is b. (On arithmetic and computation)
11. yat al-'i z f al-'a wal-'al z. (On riddles and enigmas)
12. yat al-ma nam f al-'Ism al-'A am.
(On the supreme name of God)
13. A poem in all rum z al-'aql m al-makt ba al al-bar b .
(A poem on cryptanalysis)
14. kanz ad-durar f ur f 'awa'il as-suwar.
(On the individual letters introducing some Koranic chapters)
15. mu ta ar al-mubham f all al-mutar am.
(A résumé in cryptanalysis)
16. mift al-kun z f ' al-marm z. [This book]
(Key to treasures in clarifying ciphers)
17. al-mun sab t al- adadiyya f al-'asm ' al-mu ammadiyya.
(Numerical proportions in the names of Prophet Mu ammad)
18. mun sabat al- is b f 'asm ' al-'anbiy ' al-ma k r n f al-Kit b.
(Numerical relations in the names of prophets mentioned in the Koran)
19. na m liqaw id fann al-mutar am wa aw bi ih.
(On the rules and regulations of cryptology)
4
1.2 Study and analysis of ibn ad-Durayhim’s
treatise
ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise Mift al-Kun z f ' al-Marm z is a

masterpiece in its precision and coverage of the bulk of information
known of this science at the time, insomuch that it is the most
comprehensive and far-ranging of all the manuscripts that have come
under our hands1. It also marks a fully-fledged past master who
practiced cryptology since he worked in the employ of such kings as
Sultan al-malik an-N ir.
ibn ad-Durayhim wrote several books on cryptology, some of
which he touched upon in the introduction of this treatise. He had first
written his book al-Mubham all al-mutar am, then abridged
it in another book, which was lost. Some time later, he committed to
paper a sufficient amount of what had remained in his memory of the
rules of this art, in compliance with the request of a notability "Who
must be obeyed, and whose request cannot be refused"2. Mift al-
Kun z was really a by-product of that work.
1
Some historians of science and cryptology numbered ibn ad-Durayhim’s
manuscript among the lost books. David Kahn, for instance, says of Mift al-
Kun z f ' al-marm z: "Though this must be included among the Lost Books
of cryptology, most of its information was probably preserved in Qalqashandi".
See The Codebreakers, p. 95.
2
See his treatise, p. 51.
5
1.3 Structure of the treatise
ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise is divided into five sections, each of
which is composed of several related topics. Following the
introduction these are:
1. Essentials for those practicing cryptanalysis.
2. Types of encipherment.
3. Morphological introduction.
4. Algorithm for cryptanalysis.
5. Two practical examples of cryptanalysis.
1.3.1 Essentials for those practicing cryptanalysis

In this section ibn ad-Durayhim sums up what the cryptanalyst
needs to know before plunging into cryptanalysis. A cryptanalyst
should be well-acquainted with:
1. The cryptogram language he is seeking to break.
2. Language grammar.
3. Frequency of occurrence of letters, and their order.
4. Letters detachable and conjoint with both preceding and
following letters.
5. Number of letters of each language.
6. Alphabets and numerical alphabets.
7. Types and methods of cryptography.
ibn ad-Durayhim accommodates his treatise with significant

information about the various languages known at the time ‫ـــ‬an
accomplishment that bears out his familiarity with them. He also
confirms what al-Kind had already mentioned concerning the fact
that long vowels have the highest frequency of occurrence in all
languages. Yet, he does not adopt al-Kind 's designation; nor is there
any mention of the short vowels along the lines of al-Kind . In this
bearing, no doubt, ibn ad-Durayhim comes short of al-Kind 's standing
and depth of comprehension.
He moves on to discuss the letters of frequent occurrence in certain
languages, drawing the conclusion that it is (A) "alif" in Arabic, (S) in
Latin and Armenian, and (N) in Mongol. He has been so perceptive as
6
to invite attention to calligraphs with detachable letters, and those with
conjoint letters, concluding that all calligraphs have detached letters,
short of Mongol, Syriac and Arabic, some letters of which are
detached, while others can be both detachable or conjoint.
It is worthy of remark that in cryptanalysis, acquaintance with the
number of letters of many languages is a matter of primary
importance. ibn ad-Durayhim's erudition and vast knowledge of a
good few languages of his time seem to have enabled him to grasp
those languages with the largest number of characters (e.g. Armenian
and Hindi), and those with the fewest number (e.g. Mongol and
Sumerian). The following table (Table 1.1) demonstrates those
languages and number of letters in their alphabets according to ibn
ad-Durayhim's citation:
Number
Calligraphs Remarks
of letters
Mongol 17
Sumerian 18
Persian 20
Turkish 20
Hebrew 22
Syriac 22
Astankily 22
Greek 24
They have another calligraphy (30) for the
Old Latin 24 uncertain of their letters.
French 27
Latin 27
One of the Hindi languages 28
Coptic 32 They also have a numerical alphabet.
Armenian 36
Another of the Hindi For some Indians; called by ibn ad-Durayhim
languages
52 "the triangular Hindi"
Table 1.1: Calligraphs and alphabet size (number of letters) in different

languages, as given by ibn ad-Durayhim
1.3.2 Types of encipherment

According to ibn ad-Durayhim, encipherment types may be
itemized under the following eight types:
7
1. Transposition.
2. Substitution.
3. The augmentation or reduction of the number of letters.
4. The utilization of cipher devices.
5. The replacement of letters by numbers, using the decimally-
weighted numerical alphabet.
6. The encipherment of letters by using words.
7. Replacing letters by generic names (i.e. applying the relationship
and diffusion method).
8. Using invented symbols or signs to represent letters.
ibn ad-Durayhim preeminently excelled in explaining methods of

encipherment, analyzing different potentialities, invoking illustrative
examples, and propounding qualifications for each method. This made
ibn ad-Durayhim rank literally first in this regard (i.e. in his extensive
explanation and analysis of methods) among all authors of the
manuscripts we have so far edited. Besides, he represented, for the
first time ever, a number of topical completely new methods. By
comparison, al-Kind , for instance, had thoroughly covered the
various methods, but without touching upon the possibilities and
conditions that govern them; furthermore, ibn Adl n had not at all
mentioned in his al-Mu'allaf lil Malik al-'A raf any method of
encipherment, although he might probably have done so in his other
work al-Mu lam. Notwithstanding the fact that many of ibn ad-
Durayhim's methods were already approached by ibn Dunayn r, the
latter did not rise up to the ibn ad-Durayhim's status in terms of
elaboration, analysis and clarity.
Hence we believe that the importance of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise
stems more from his citation and analysis of encipherment methods
than from his practice of cryptanalysis.
The following paragraphs give a brief account of each of the eight
types:
1.3.2.1 Transposition
Opening right from the beginning with this type, and following it
by the substitution type, evinces ibn ad-Durayhim's awareness and
realization of the significance of these two methods, as the core of the
8
whole science of cryptography in all times. Transposition, according
to him, can be divided into three types, depending on the extent of the
transposition process. These are transposition within:
 a single word.
 two words.
 the whole message.
He then gets down to details, making ramifications for every type.
It suffices here to give two examples of his transposition
encipherment, which are:
Arrangement of plaintext 1234567
Ascending alternate horizontal transposition 1726354
Descending alternate horizontal transposition 7 1 6 2 5 3 4
It should be noteworthy here to exhibit an important method based
on the idea of taking up the first letter and leaving out a set number of
letters, and so forth till the end of the text, then taking up the second
letter, leaving out the same number of letters till the end of the text.
For example,
Arrangement of plaintext letters:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
t h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t f o r m
Arrangement of ciphertext letters, by taking every fifth letter:

1 6 11 16 2 7 12 17 3 8 13 18 4 9 14 19 5 10 15 20
t s o t h t r f e i t o m m a r o p n m
This method is in effect equivalent to the transposition method
commonly used, whereby the plaintext is written in lines of five letters
each, and the cryptogram is formed by transposition, reading the
plaintext vertically. Thus, the above example would run:
Plaintext
1 2 3 4 5
t h e m o
6 7 8 9 10
Ciphertext
s t i m p
11 12 13 14 15
o r t a n
16 17 18 19 20
t f o r m
9
1.3.2.2 Substitution
The analysis by ibn ad-Durayhim of the common substitution
methods is truly impressive. He has stated his intention to explain the
norms governing them. He says: "Encipherment methods are of
various types, too many to enumerate. I mean to mention the basic
principles and rules that govern their laws" 3.
To him, encipherment by substitution falls into two kinds:
1. unregulated.
2. regulated.
In the unregulated encipherment, the substitution is determined by
a set key, such as a line of verse. He declares that this kind of
encipherment "is generative of innumerable cipher alphabets"4. It is an
accomplished fact that the possible number of cipher alphabets for a
29-letter alphabet is the permutation of 29 elements. This is expressed
by the equation: n! = 29! , which is a large number indeed  5 x 1028
ibn ad-Durayhim exemplifies the unregulated simple substitution
by three cipher alphabets, namely al-Qumm , al-Fahlaw , (This had
already been mentioned in ibn Adlan's al-Mu'allaf lil Malik al-
'A raf), and a third cipher alphabet not credited to anybody. All three
cipher alphabets, in addition to a forth one given by ibn Adlan, are
illustrated in the two tables to follow. Order of letters for those cipher
alphabets are specified through mnemonic verses, serving as keys to
ciphering. These verses are used in two ways:
The one is by substituting for each letter of the verse the respective
letter of the alphabet or numerical alphabet, as demonstrated in the
following table (Table 1.2):
3
4
Ibid., p. 63.
10
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫م‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ى‬ ً ُ ٓ ٗ
The alphabet
ٛ ٟ ٣ ٧ ٫ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ال‬ ‫ي‬
The numerical alphabet ‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ٛ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ً
(ab ad ) ٣ ٫ ٓ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ُ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ٗ ٟ ٧
‫ٳ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫أ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ػ‬ ٛ ٓ ‫ال‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ه‬ ً ٣ ٫
Al-Qummi cipher alphabet
‫ي‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ؿ‬ ُ ٧ ٗ ‫س‬ ‫ط‬ ‫د‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٯ‬
ٛ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫د‬ ُ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ً ٫ ٟ ‫ٷ‬ ‫م‬ ‫أ‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ى‬
ibn ad-Durayhim's cipher alphabet
٣ ‫ؿ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ال‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ي‬ ‫س‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ٓ ‫څـ‬ ٧ ٗ
‫ٯ‬ ‫ك‬ ٗ ‫ط‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ڇ‬ ُ ‫ٳ‬ ‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫س‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ٻ‬
Al-Fahlawi cipher alphabet
‫م‬ ً ‫ؿ‬ ٛ ‫د‬ ٧ ٓ ‫ٿ‬ ٣ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ال‬ ٫ ٟ
ٓ ‫ػ‬ ٣ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫د‬ ُ ٧ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ٻ‬
ibn Adl n's cipher alphabet
‫أ‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ٫ ٟ ‫ٳ‬ ‫س‬ ‫ى‬ ٛ ٗ ‫ه‬ ‫ط‬ ً
Al-Qummi cipher alphabet:

ibn ad-Durayhim's cipher alphabet:
Al-Fahlawi cipher alphabet:
ibn Adl n's cipher alphabet:
Table 1.2: The alphabetical and numerical-alphabet letters, with their corresponding cipher alphabets.
11
The other is by considering the verse as composed of pairs of
letters; the substitution is done reciprocally between the letters within
each pair, as shown in the following table (Table 1.3):
al-Qumm ‫ٳ‬ ‫أ‬ ‫ػ‬ ٓ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ك‬ ً ٫ ‫ة‬ ‫ؿ‬ ٧ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ٿ‬
cipher alphabet ‫ٻ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ٛ ‫ال‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ه‬ ٣ ‫ي‬ ‫ى‬ ُ ٗ ‫ط‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٯ‬
ibn ad- ٛ ‫ٯ‬ ُ ‫ڇ‬ ٫ ‫ٷ‬ ‫أ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫ال‬ ‫ك‬ ‫س‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫څـ‬ ٗ
Durayhim's
cipher alphabet ‫ه‬ ‫د‬ ‫ٻ‬ ً ٟ ‫م‬ ‫ط‬ ٣ ‫ة‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ٓ ٧ ٗ
al-Fahlaw ‫ٯ‬ ٗ ‫ى‬ ‫ه‬ ُ ‫أ‬ ‫س‬ ‫ٻ‬ ً ٛ ٧ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ال‬ ٟ
cipher alphabet ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫د‬ ٓ ٣ ‫ي‬ ٫ ٟ
ibn Adl n's ٓ ٣ ‫ك‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫د‬ ٧ ‫ة‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ؿ‬ ٫ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ى‬ ٗ ‫ط‬
cipher alphabet ‫ػ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٯ‬ ُ ‫ٷ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫أ‬ ‫م‬ ٟ ‫س‬ ٛ ‫ه‬ ً
Table 1.3: Dual order of letters for some cipher alphabets
In the regulated simple substitution, on the other hand, substitution

is applied in accordance with a fixed rule. Of this kind ibn ad-
Durayhim proposes four methods that are grouped under two classes:
Class I:
- The first method, in which the substitute for each letter of an
alphabet is the one immediately following, or every third or
fourth letter next to it …(Table 1.4)
- The second method, in which the substitute for each letter is the
one immediately preceding, or every third or fourth letter before
it …(Table 1.5)
Class II:
- The third method lends itself to considering the alphabet as
composed of pairs of letters; the substitution is done reciprocally
between the letters within each pair. The pairs are formed by
systematically taking every letter with the following one, or with
every third, fourth, etc. letter next to it. (Table 1.6)
- The fourth method is similar to the third, except that pairs are
formed by taking every letter with the one immediately preceding,
or with every second, third, fourth, etc. letter before it. (Table 1.7)
ibn ad-Durayhim viewed the letters of the alphabet -when applying

the regulated substitution encipherment- as located on a circle
circumference or a disk, "because letters," he says, "are like a circle in
12
that the last letter is replaceable by the first letter as if to follow or
precede it" 5. This notion was certainly the rudimentary basis of the
concept of the cipher disk which became in common use during later
centuries. The following figure (Figure 1.1) exhibits ibn ad-
Durayhim's circle of letters:
Figure 1.1: ibn ad-Durayhim's circle of letters
We shall try in what follows to elucidate the four above-mentioned

methods of ibn ad-Durayhim's regulated substitution:
5
13
The rule for processing the first method was to substitute for each
letter the one immediately following, or every third or fourth letter,
and so forth… This resulted in (28) cipher alphabets when using the
numerical alphabet, and (29) cipher alphabets using the alphabet
(since the latter has one more character, i.e., ‫)ال‬. In so doing, ibn ad-
Durayhim counted the natural order of letters as one of these cipher
alphabets.
The following tables (1.4 & 1.5) represent the cipher alphabets
resulting from adopting the numerical-alphabet order, and those
resulting from the alphabetical order respectively.
27 1
26 2
25 3
24 4
23 5
22 6
21 7
20 8
19 9
18 10
17 11
16 12
15 13
14 14
13 15
12 16
11 17
10 18
9 19
8 20
7 21
6 22
5 23
4 24
3 25
2 26
1 27
14
Table 1.4: Table of encipherment, following the first method, using the
numerical-alphabet order.
29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
Table 1.5: Table of encipherment, following the second method, using the
alphabetical order.
As for the second method of the regulated simple substitution, ibn
ad-Durayhim states that, similar to the first method where we
substitute for a letter the one following it, we can substitute for a letter
the one preceding it. As he puts it, "… or by substituting for a letter
the one preceding it. This would bring about a number of cipher
alphabets amounting to 58". In fact substituting for a letter the one
before generates quite the same cipher alphabets as when substituting
15
for a letter the one after. The only difference lies in the key number.
Notice for example in the first of the previous couple of tables that
substituting for (‫ )أ‬the next letter would effect key No.1 in the first
method; whereas substituting for (‫ )أ‬the preceding letter would effect
key No.27 in the first method, which is key No.1 in the second
method.
It is important to note that the previous tables (1.4 & 1.5) are
reminiscent of what is commonly known in the West as the Vigenère6
Table. It would have rightly been more appropriate to have been
termed the ibn ad-Durayhim Table, distant though the two eras are
from each other.
The rule for processing the third and fourth methods (Class II) was
to look at the letters of the alphabet as pairs formed by taking every
letter with the following/preceding one, or every second, third, etc.
next /prior to it. This would produce 58 cipher alphabets as stated by
ibn ad-Durayhim above. The following two tables (1.6 & 1.7) display
respectively the cipher alphabets engendered by substituting the two
methods of Class II.
Note that the lower half of the tables (i.e., Nos. 15-28) is no
different from one of the tables attributed to Porta7, the well-known
cryptologist of the West, called "the double substitution system".
6
Vigenère (1523-1596).
7
Porta (born 1535).
16
‫أ‬ ‫ط‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫س‬ ‫م‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬
‫‪+1‬‬
‫ة‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫د‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬
‫‪+2‬‬
‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬
‫‪+3‬‬
‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬
‫‪+4‬‬
‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬
‫‪+5‬‬
‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬
‫‪+6‬‬
‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬
‫‪+7‬‬
‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬
‫‪+8‬‬
‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬
‫‪+9‬‬
‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬
‫‪+10‬‬
‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬
‫‪+11‬‬
‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬
‫‪+12‬‬
‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬
‫‪+13‬‬
‫ٿ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬
‫‪+14‬‬
‫ً‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫‪+15‬‬
‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+16‬‬
‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+17‬‬
‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+18‬‬
‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+19‬‬
‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+20‬‬
‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+21‬‬
‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+22‬‬
‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+23‬‬
‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+24‬‬
‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+25‬‬
‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+26‬‬
‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+27‬‬
‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪Table 1.6: Table of encipherment as given by ibn ad-Durayhim, following the‬‬
‫‪third method using the numerical-alphabet order.‬‬
‫‪Note: Porta's double substitution system is part of this table.‬‬
‫‪17‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫م‬ ‫س‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ى‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ط‬
‫‪+1‬‬
‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫د‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬
‫‪+2‬‬
‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬
‫‪+3‬‬
‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬
‫‪+4‬‬
‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬
‫‪+5‬‬
‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬
‫‪+6‬‬
‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬
‫‪+7‬‬
‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬
‫‪+8‬‬
‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬
‫‪+9‬‬
‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬
‫‪+10‬‬
‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬
‫‪+11‬‬
‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬
‫‪+12‬‬
‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫ً‬
‫‪+13‬‬
‫‪٧‬‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٣‬‬
‫‪+14‬‬
‫ً‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫‪ٛ‬‬ ‫ػ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٫‬‬
‫‪+15‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٓ‬
‫‪+16‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬
‫‪+17‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫ه‬
‫‪+18‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬ ‫ُ‬
‫‪+19‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬ ‫د‬
‫‪+20‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫س‬
‫‪+21‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ؿ‬
‫‪+22‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫م‬
‫‪+23‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫ٗ‬
‫‪+24‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪٧‬‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬
‫‪+25‬‬
‫أ‬ ‫‪٣‬‬ ‫‪٫‬‬ ‫ٓ‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ُ‬ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ‫ٗ‬ ‫‪ٟ‬‬ ‫‪٧‬‬
‫‪+26‬‬
‫‪Table 1.7: Table of encipherment as given by ibn ad-Durayhim, following the‬‬

‫‪fourth method using the numerical-alphabet order.‬‬
‫‪Note: Porta's double substitution system is part of this table.‬‬
‫‪18‬‬
ibn ad-Durayhim directed attention to an important issue related to
the already mentioned cipher alphabets; namely, when the encipherer
is "Maghrebi" -from North Africa or Arab Spain-, because the order of
letters in their numerical alphabet differs from that of the one used in
the Muslim East. He set out to mention the Maghrebi numerical
alphabet as it was actually used. This indicates that correspondence
was active between North-Africa/Arab Spain in the west, and Egypt,
Syria and Iraq in the east. Still, he never failed to point out that, in
encipherment by regulated substitution, the (‫ )ڇ‬was made by some to
occur before the ( ‫)څـ‬, contrary to the usual order of the ( ‫ )څـ‬coming
first. Moreover, he provided one of the numerical alphabets of the
Indian calligraphs. All this promotes the belief of ibn ad-Durayhim's
all-round acquaintance with, and in-depth knowledge of, the
possibilities of encipherment by substitution.
The following table (Table 1.8) manifests the order of Arabic
letters of both the alphabet and numerical alphabet in eastern and
western Arab worlds, together with a numerical alphabet of an Indian
calligraph.
19
Order of Arabic Order of Arabic
Order of an Indian
Alphabet Numerical alphabet
Numerical alphabet
Eastern Western Eastern Western
1 ‫أ‬ ‫أ‬ ‫أ‬ ‫أ‬ ‫أ‬
2 ‫ب‬ ‫ب‬ ‫ب‬ ‫ب‬ ‫ي‬
‫أبجذ‬ ‫أبجذ‬ ‫أيقػ‬
3 ‫ت‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ج‬ ‫ج‬ ‫ق‬
4 ‫ث‬ ‫ث‬ ‫د‬ ‫د‬ ‫غ‬
5 ‫ج‬ ‫ج‬ ‫هـ‬ ‫هـ‬ ‫ب‬
6 ‫ح‬ ‫ح‬ ‫و‬ ‫هوص‬ ‫و‬ ‫هوص‬ ‫ك‬ ‫بكش‬
7 ‫خ‬ ‫خ‬ ‫ص‬ ‫ص‬ ‫س‬
8 ‫د‬ ‫د‬ ‫ح‬ ‫ح‬ ‫ج‬
9 ‫ر‬ ‫ر‬ ‫ط‬ ‫حطي‬ ‫ط‬ ‫حطي‬ ‫ل‬ ‫جلص‬
10 ‫س‬ ‫س‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ش‬
11 ‫ص‬ ‫ص‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ك‬ ‫د‬
12 ‫س‬ ‫س‬ ‫ل‬ ‫ل‬ ‫م‬ ‫دهت‬
‫كلوي‬ ‫كلوي‬
13 ‫ش‬ ‫ش‬ ‫م‬ ‫م‬ ‫ت‬
14 ‫ص‬ ‫ص‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ى‬ ‫هـ‬
15 ‫ض‬ ‫ض‬ ‫س‬ ‫ص‬ ‫ى‬ ‫هنث‬
16 ‫ط‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ؼ‬ ‫ؼ‬ ‫ث‬
‫سعفص‬ ‫صعفط‬
17 ‫ظ‬ ‫ظ‬ ‫ف‬ ‫ف‬ ‫و‬
18 ‫ؼ‬ ‫ؼ‬ ‫ص‬ ‫ض‬ ‫س‬ ‫وسخ‬
19 ‫غ‬ ‫غ‬ ‫ق‬ ‫ق‬ ‫خ‬
20 ‫ف‬ ‫ف‬ ‫س‬ ‫س‬ ‫ص‬
‫قشضت‬ ‫قشست‬
21 ‫ق‬ ‫ق‬ ‫ش‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؼ‬ ‫صعز‬
22 ‫ك‬ ‫ك‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ت‬ ‫ر‬
23 ‫ل‬ ‫ل‬ ‫ث‬ ‫ث‬ ‫ح‬
24 ‫م‬ ‫م‬ ‫خ‬ ‫ثخز‬ ‫خ‬ ‫ثخز‬ ‫غ‬ ‫حغط‬
25 ‫ى‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ر‬ ‫ر‬ ‫ض‬
8
26 ‫هـ‬ ‫هـ‬ ‫ض‬ ‫ظ‬ ‫ط‬
8
27 ‫و‬ ‫و‬ ‫ظ‬ ‫ظػػ‬ ‫غ‬ ‫غغص‬ ‫ص‬ ‫طصع‬
28 ‫ال‬ ‫ال‬ ‫غ‬ ‫ش‬ ‫ظ‬
29 ‫ي‬ ‫ي‬
Table 1.8: Table of the order of letters of both the alphabet and
numerical alphabet in eastern and western Arab worlds,
together with an Indian numerical alphabet.
8
Order reversed by some.
20
1.3.2.3 The augmentation or reduction of the
number of letters
Under this type, ibn ad-Durayhim reported three methods, the
counterparts of which we had earlier met with al-Kind 's "simple
encipherment where letters retain their forms". ibn ad-Durayhim
contributed in enriching and enhancing those methods through
advancing several variations within each. In his third method, he
enunciated the important practice based on adding one or more letters
to each word, following a fixed key; for instance, adding (‫ )أ‬in the first
word, (‫ )ة‬in the second, and so forth… This bespeaks his awareness
of changing the rule from one word to another. We do not really know
for certain what precluded him from mentioning the polyalphabetic
substitution, though many of the basic concepts behind it he seemed to
be fully aware of.
1.3.2.4 The utilization of cipher devices

Four simple devices have been mentioned by ibn ad-Durayhim in
two different places, the latter of which we have entitled: "A return to
the type on the utilization of cipher devices"9. These cipher devices
are:
a. Chessboard, assigning each square to a letter.
b. Punched board, with a number of holes equal to the language
letters; the cryptogram is represented by a thread marking a
route which defines the letters of the message successively.
c. Coloured beads threaded on a string as a rosary. Each letter of
the alphabet is coded by a certain number of coloured beads.
d. Paper folded in pleats. The message is written on a folded paper
and concealed by unfolding it and adding other superfluous
figures to it for further complication.
ibn ad-Durayhim comments on using such devices like that of the

folded paper, for example: "This device, however, is not really an
9
21
encipherment; therefore we say that such matters need sound common
sense lest the decryptor should deviate from the right solution"10.
1.3.2.5 The replacement of letters by numbers,

using the decimally-weighted numerical
alphabet
This type was overlooked by al-Kind in his treatise: F isti r al-
mu amm (On cryptanalysing ciphered messages) and ibn Adl n in
his al-mu'allaf lil malik al-'A raf (The book written for King
al-'A raf), but had already been mentioned by ibn Dunayn r in his
treatise Maq id al-fu l al-mutar ima an all at-tar ama11
(Expositional chapters on solving ciphers). The method belongs under
substitution, with the possibility of substituting for a letter one or more
letters or words pursuant to a set rule, as this "involves more
sophistication", ibn ad-Durayhim proclaims12. This process may be
represented by the following model (Figure 1.2), showing ibn ad-
Durayhim's method of encipherment, followed by a table (Table 1.9)
of the numerical alphabet with the corresponding numbers in this type
of encipherment; namely, the arithmetic using decimally-weighted
numerical alphabet or " is b al- ummal".
10
11
"Collected Papers on Cryptology", 66/B and 67/A.
12
22
Figure 1.2: ibn ad-Durayhim's method of encipherment by substitution of numbers for letters using the
decimally-weighted numerical alphabet
Re-substitution: by
Substitution of Arithmetic operation The ciphertext
substituting for a (letters or words)
The letter numbers for letters according to a set rule
(CLEARTEXT)
number one or several (CRYPTOGRAM)
letters
A numerical cryptogram expressed in one of the following forms:

(a) numbers written in words; e.g. thirty, seven, forty, ……
(b) numbers written in Arabic numerals; e.g. 30, 7, 40, ……
(c) numbers written to look like a page of financial register.
(d) numbers communicated to a recipient (it is not a written form) through the well-known Arab method of signalling by
finger - bending (manual alphabet).
23
‫ا‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ٛ
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ً ٣ ٫ ٓ
10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ُ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ٗ ٟ
100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900
٧
1000
x 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
1 ‫ا‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ك‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ڇ‬ ‫ى‬ ‫ػ‬ ٛ
10 ‫ي‬ ‫ٳ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ً ٣ ٫ ٓ
100 ‫ٯ‬ ‫ه‬ ُ ‫د‬ ‫س‬ ‫ؿ‬ ‫م‬ ٗ ٟ
1000 ٧
Table 1.9: Table of the letters of the numerical alphabet with

corresponding decimal numerical values.
To illustrate this method, let us now give a case in point by

enciphering the proper name Muhammad (‫)ٽؾپل‬:
The numerical cryptogram of this name can be expressed in one of
the following forms:
- In words; i.e., forty, eight, forty, four.
- In Arabic numbers; i.e., 40, 8, 40, 4, and the cryptogram look like
a list of figures.
- By giving the cryptogram a semblance of a financial register. This
method is too obvious to require illustration.
- Through manual signalling by finger-bending. This way is
used, for instance, in communication by deaf-mutes. When
the cryptographer used his fingers to convey the numbers:
40, 8, 40 and 4, the recipient would understand the
message to have meant the name ‫ٽؾپل‬, which is a manual
alphabet.
- Resubstituting letters for the number representative of the
intended letter. Thus, our example (‫ )ٽؾپل‬becomes:
24
‫ اط‬،ً‫ ٹ‬،‫ ثڈ‬،ً‫ ٹ‬By breaking up the number into a sum of two
numbers, so long as their numerical values add up
to the numerical value of the original letter.
(40=30+10, 8=2+6, 40=30+10, 4=1+3)
‫ ثت‬،‫ ٵٴ‬،‫ اى‬،‫ ٵٴ‬By breaking up the number into a sum of two
numbers of another choice.
(40=20+20, 8=1+7, 40=20+20, 4=2+2)
‫ ػ‬،٫ ،‫ ٌڈ‬،٫ By doubling the number.
(40x2=80, 8x2=10+6, 40x2=80, 4x2=8)
‫ ٌت‬،‫ ٱٴ‬،‫ ٵل‬،‫ ٱٴ‬By tripling the number.
(40x3=120, 8x3=24, 40x3=120, 4x3=12)
This method is based on the principle of substituting letters to stand

for the number representing the intended clear letter. This may be
done by means of analyzing the number into its immediate
constituents (which, of course, adds to the process of analysis for
cryptanalysing); or through making it two, three, four, or five times as
greater in value; or by employing any other arithmetic rule.
It is to be noted that this method is extremely important, as it is the
first in the history of cryptography to represent a marked departure
from previous practice, in which more than one symbol or letter are
substituted for a single letter, and numbers for letters.
1.3.2.6 The encipherment of letters by using

words
Reverting to al-Kind , we may conveniently term this method
encipherment by substitution of letters without "relationship" but with
"diffusion" -i.e., without a key but with expansion of the number of
characters-, whereby a word is substituted for each letter, with the
intended letter embedded in the word, in keeping with a set rule. ibn
ad-Durayhim cites four methods under this type, pioneering in some,
and taking up the others at the point where his predecessors had left
off. These methods are:
A) Substituting for a letter its spelling, or the spelling reversed,
or enciphering by synthesizing both elements in a certain
manner (e.g. by alternately writing the straight spelling of a
letter and the reversed spelling of the next letter).
25
The name ( ‫)ٽؾپل‬, by way of example, is enciphered by substituting
for each letter its spelling thus: ‫ ٽٍپؾب ٽٍپلاٷ‬:‫ٽؾپل‬
)‫ ك = كاٷ‬،‫ ٻ = ٽٍټ‬،‫ ػ = ؽب‬،‫(ٻ = ٽٍټ‬
And by using this spelling reversed alternately thus: ‫ ٽٍپبؽپٍپالك‬:‫ٽؾپل‬
The above rules give rise to "many ramifications"13.
B) Encipherment by letters embedded in the words
conformably with a fixed rule; for example by taking the first
letter of each word, so that the name ( ً‫ٺ‬٥) can be enciphered:
( ‫ٺپذ ٹپٌٍ ٌؾٍى‬٥); or by taking the last letter of each word where
(ً‫ٺ‬٥) becomes: (ً‫ ٽبٷ أث‬٤ٍٙ).
It can also be done by taking the odd letters only, or even letters
only, or by leaving out a specific number of letters throughout. ibn ad-
Durayhim reports quite a few of these methods and their offshoots.
Those methods later came to be called the "Grille systems". Amongst
his examples of what may be brought under a regular Grille system is
"taking the first letter and then every fourth letter throughout, so that
in enciphering the words: ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ ‫ټ‬٥ ‫ )ٽؾپل اثڀ‬you may write:
"‫لڃ اٹزجغٍٸ ٹڄ‬٦ٍ ‫لٿ أٽبٿ‬٦‫"ٽڀ اٹؾَڀ ٹپڀ ٌزلٌڀ ثبٹٲوثى ٹغڂبة ٽ‬14.
‫ٷ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ً ‫ػ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬

‫ة‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ك‬ ‫د‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬
‫ط‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ډ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ه‬ ‫ٯ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ا‬
‫أ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ك‬ ٣ ‫ٻ‬ ‫ة‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ٿ‬
‫ا‬ ‫څـ‬ ‫ك‬ ٣ ً ‫ٿ‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ٻ‬
‫څـ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ي‬ ‫ط‬ ‫ة‬ ‫د‬ ‫ٷ‬
ibn ad-Durayhim further indicates another feasibility when merging

the cleartext in the ciphertext, so that it may be read inversely (i.e.,
backwards: contrary to the writing direction)15. The use of this method
has become familiar in the Grille systems later.
13
14
Ibid., p. 73.
15
Ibid., p. 73.
26
C) Substituting a word for a letter: There are many possibilities
for bringing this method to pass: letters may assume names of
people, stars, mansions of the moon, months (lunar, Latin, Coptic),
number of days in a month, hours of the day, days of the week,
book names, suras of the Koran, region names, ointments, drugs,
fruits, trees, etc.
It is well worth mentioning here that some of these systems had
been tackled by ibn Dunayn r16 in more detail.
D) Substituting for a letter a picture or representation of all
that can be symbolized -suggestive of rebus-, such as birds,
animals, plants, etc. What is really peculiar to ibn ad-Durayhim in
this connection is his indication of the special branched calligraph
which looks like fancy flourishes and tails, and is based on the
words of the numerical alphabet. Such calligraphy, in fact, stands
to his credit as the first of its kind to be mentioned; none of ibn ad-
Durayhim's predecessors whose treatises are covered in this study
had mentioned it. However, it has recently been revealed to us that
ibn Wa iyya, in his awq al-Mustah m f Ma rifat Rum z al-
Aql m (Seekers’ joy in identifying other languages’ written
symbols), had already mentioned it.
1.3.2.7 Replacing letters by generic names

(i.e. applying the relationship and diffusion method)
Encipherment in this type takes as a basis changing letter forms,
using conceptual relationship and diffusion. ibn ad-Durayhim's
utilization of al-Kind 's term of "conceptual relationship and
diffusion" highlights the importance of the latter's treatise and its far-
reaching impact on his successors. "This," ibn ad-Durayhim notes,
"relates to what has been denominated 'relationship and diffusion',
where a genus or species is representative of a letter."17
16
See his treatise: Maq id al-Fu l al-Mutar ima an all at-tar ama; from
"Collected Papers on Cryptology", 64/A.
17
27
The following (Table 1.10) is a table of the generic names which
stand for each letter of the Arabic alphabet, as given by ibn ad-
Durayhim. It is interesting to notice that the first letter of the name of
genus in Arabic is the letter to be ciphered:
a ‫أ‬ People ‫أځبٻ‬

b ‫ة‬ Vegetable ‫ثٲڈٷ‬
t ‫د‬ Dates, soil, or spices ‫رپڈه أڇ رواة أڇ رڈاثٸ‬
‫س‬ Clothing ‫صٍبة‬
‫ط‬ Leather ‫عٺڈك‬
‫ػ‬ Cereals or iron ‫ؽجڈة أڇ ؽلٌل‬
‫ؿ‬ Wood ‫فْت‬
d ‫ك‬ Animals or ointments ‫كڇاة أڇ كڅبٿ‬
‫م‬ Gold ‫مڅت‬
r ‫ه‬ Aromatic plants ‫هٌبؽٍڀ‬
z ‫ى‬ Glass ‫ىعبط‬
s ً Weaponry or fishes ‫ٍالػ أڇ ٍپٴ‬
ُ Months, hair, or chess ‫وځظ‬ّٞ ‫ڈه أڇ‬٦ّ ‫ّچڈه أڇ‬
ٓ Dyes, brass, gum, or wool ٫‫ أڇ ٕڈ‬٧‫ أڇ ٕٮو أڇ ٕپڈ‬٧‫ٕجڈ‬
ٗ Light or regions ٣‫ٍب‬ٙ ‫ڈء أڇ‬ٙ
ٛ Birds ‫ٍڈه‬ٝ
ٟ Dark or deer ‫جبء‬١ ‫الٻ أڇ‬١
٣ Perfume, eyes (or springs), or number (or tools) ‫لك‬٥ ‫ٍڈٿ أڇ‬٥ ‫و أڇ‬ٞ٥
٧ Sheep ‫ڂى‬٩ ‫ڂټ أڇ‬٩
f ٫ Fruits ‫٭ڈاٵڄ‬
q ‫ٯ‬ Villages or reed ‫ٱوډ أڇ ٱٖت‬
k ‫ٳ‬ Books or planets ‫ٵزت أڇ ٵڈاٵت‬
l ‫ٷ‬ Milk ‫ٹجڀ‬
m ‫ٻ‬ Towns ‫ٽلٿ‬
n ‫ٿ‬ Stars or cooper ً‫ځغڈٻ أڇ ځؾب‬
w ‫ڇ‬ Wild animal, currency (coin), or paper ‫ڇؽڈُ أڇ ڇُهْٯ أڇ ڇَهَٯ‬
h ‫څـ‬ Vermin, pests, etc. ‫څڈاٻ‬
l ‫ال‬ Scissors ّٔ‫ٽٲ‬
y ‫ي‬ Jewellery ‫ٌڈاٱٍذ‬
Table 1.10: A list of generic names which match the Arabic alphabet,
used by ibn ad-Durayhim.
28
To be noted is the clear uniformity in designation between ibn ad-
Durayhim's statements here and al-Kind 's exemplifications in his
treatise, as well as ibn Dunayn r's tables18. ibn ad-Durayhim's new
contribution manifests itself in indicating various possibilities of
methods and their number. Thus, he handles encipherment in terms of
genus/species relationship and the resultant cipher alphabets, some of
which are "restricted", or "committed", others are not. He says: "From
this emerge thirty-two cipher alphabets, the first of which is
unrestricted, the second is restricted to the letter (‫)ا‬, the third to the
letter (‫)ة‬, and so on till the end of the alphabet"19. The cipher
alphabets he mentions are the following arrangement:
1 unrestricted.
29 each restricted to one letter of the alphabet.
1 by changing the restriction according to the numerical-
alphabet order.
1 by changing the restriction according to alphabetical order.
-----
32 cipher alphabets
1.3.2.8 Using invented symbols or signs to

represent letters
With this type ibn ad-Durayhim concludes his discussion of
encipherment methods. This is a variety of simple substitution he
would utilize in his examples on cryptanalysing. The keynote of the
method is substituting for each letter of the clear alphabet a distinctive
symbol. Among its conveniencies are the susceptibility to fill up
spaces with hyphens, dots, blanks, circles; or by a symbol similar to
that devised for the letters. Applicable to this method also is the
addition of extra symbols; namely, nulls which render cryptanalysis
more complicated.
18
Maq id al-Fu l al-Mutar ima an all at-tar ama; from "Collected Papers on
Cryptology", 64/A.
19
29
However, ibn ad-Durayhim could be criticized for bypassing the
possibility of sparing the space; what ibn Adl n termed "the no-word-
spacer cryptogram", or "al-mudma ". This spells ibn Adl n's
superiority as concerns the presentation of cryptanalysis methods.
1.3.3 Morphological introduction

In this significant introduction, ibn ad-Durayhim sums up some
linguistic information on the Arabic language (linguistic,
morphological and phonetic rules). He deems that it is an
indispensable precondition for working out cipher. He says:
"Cryptanalysing the afore-stated and all kindred ciphers needs a
'genial' introduction that serves as a guide"20. The contents of ibn ad-
Durayhim's introduction may be summarized as follows:
A. On word-length
- Definition of the "word" according to "writers" and grammarians,
and the fact that cryptology is more concerned with the "writers"
definition.
- The shortest word in Arabic is one letter, and the longest word is
fourteen letters, depending on the word being a noun, a verb or
an article.
- The maximum length of a noun prior to affixation is five letters.
- The maximum length of a verb prior to affixation is four letters.
- No word of four- or five- letter root is devoid of at least one of the
"liquid letters"; i.e. the letters: (‫ ٻ‬،‫ ة‬،٫ ،‫ ٿ‬،‫ ه‬،‫)ٷ‬.
B. The maximum repetition of a letter in one word

- The same letter can be repeated in one word five consecutive
times at the very most.
20
30
C. Combinable letters
These are of various kinds:
- Non-combinable letters (neither in anterior nor in posterior
positions).
- Combinable in anterior position only.
- Combinable in posterior position only.
- Letter repetition at the beginning of words.
ibn ad-Durayhim elaborates these kinds with highly admirable
competence. We have opted for devoting an independent study to the
related linguistic information, abundant in books on cryptology,
particularly those reported by al-Kind , ibn Dunayn r, ibn Adl n and
ibn ad-Durayhim.
The following table (Table 1.11) covers the cases of the non-
combinable letters, those non-combinable in anterior position only, or
in posterior position only, as given by ibn ad-Durayhim in his treatise
Mift al-Kun z.
31
Letter symbol Letters non-combinable Resultant non-combinable bigrams
with it
Table 1.11: Table of non-combinable letters as observed by ibn ad-Durayhim

Key: post-positively (posteriorly)
pre-positively (anteriorly)
neither post- nor pre-positively.
32
1.3.4 Algorithm for cryptanalysis
ibn ad-Durayhim's algorithm for breaking a message enciphered by
substitution may be summed up by the following stages:
a) Counting the letters or symbols.
b) Checking the times of recurrence of each letter or symbol.
c) Cryptanalysing the space, so as to properly separate the words.
d) Matching the symbol or letter frequency of occurrence in the
cryptogram against the frequency of the language letters. ibn ad-
Durayhim stresses the decisive importance of the message being
long enough to allow for acceptable matching.
e) Utilizing word lengths (two-character words, three- character
words,…) and the probable word principle.
f) Making use of the fact that the letters preceding (‫ )اٷ‬at the
beginning of a word may, all too often, be: (‫)ة‬, (٫), (‫)ٳ‬, or (‫)ڇ‬.
It merits consideration that ibn ad-Durayhim, unlike al-Kind , ibn

Dunayn r and ibn Adl n, departs from observing the same letter
order; instead, he depends on the statistics of letters of the Holy
Koran. Again, unlike his predecessors, he considers (‫ )ال‬a letter of the
alphabet.
1.3.5 Two practical examples of cryptanalysis

ibn ad-Durayhim concludes with an interesting minute analysis of
two examples ciphered by substitution, utilizing devised symbols or
shapes as ciphertext replacements. The researcher would find that, for
the most part, al-Qalqa and 's quotations21 have been derived from
these very examples. David Kahn22 believes that ibn ad-Durayhim's
work was "the first exposition on cryptanalysis in history". In fact, and
as a result of our subsequent investigation, it was brought home to us
that it was al-Kind , ibn Dunayn r and ibn Adl n who actually took
21
See ub al-'A , 9/240 and 245. (Published by al-Mu'assasa al-Mi riyya al-
mma, 1963)
22
See his book: The Codebreakers, p. 96.
33
the lead, since the earliest of those mentioned, al-Kind , lived five
centuries ahead of ibn ad-Durayhim! Still, there is no gainsaying the
merit of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatment of cryptanalysis as the most
detailed of all the past cryptographic legacy handed down to us
through generations.
1.4 Originality of ibn ad-Durayhim

From our analysis of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise we arrive at the
following conclusions:
1. ibn ad-Durayhim's originality manifested itself first and foremost
in his explanation and analysis of ciphering methods, their
individual capabilities and qualifications, especially the
substitution cipher. His originality was more evident in
cryptography than cryptanalysis.
2. We believe that he was familiar with ibn Dunayn r's treatise
Maq id al-fu l al-mutar ima an all at-tar ama. This is
evident from the uniformity in using some encipherment devices
and methods, such as the chessboard, thread, beads, and the
decimal numerical alphabet (i.e. the arithmetic using decimally-
weighted letters: is b al- ummal); unlike al-Kind and ibn
Adl n who did not make any reference to them.
3. ibn ad-Durayhim did not refer to composite encipherment,
neither did he mention the no-word-spacer encipherment as ibn
Adl n had done a century earlier. Similarly, he only made a
passing reference to ciphering poetry.
4. As noted before, al-Kind and ibn Adl n made no attempt to
deal with the decimal numerical alphabet, contrary to ibn
Dunayn r who paved the way, and ibn ad-Durayhim who
continued along his lines.
34
Chapter 2
ibn ad-Durayhim's edited

treatise:
Mift al-Kun z f ' al-Marm z
2.1 Editing methodology
The main purpose of editing is the reproduction of a text as close to
the author's original as possible. In line with this objective we have
opted for conserving the statement of the original whenever possible.
 The very nature of the original manuscripts required the
addition -where appropriate- of explicatory titles in the
interest of marking out divisions or classifications. This
would prove useful for easy understanding and clarity of
ideas.
 No effort has been spared in the interpretation of citations
(Koranic verses, Prophetic traditions, lines of poetry,
sayings, etc.) contained in the treatises. We have given brief
biographical identification of personalities, relegating the
interested reader to such authorities as al-A l m by ayr al-
D n al-Zirkily or Mu am al-mu'allif n by Omar Ri
Ka ala, for further and more detailed biographical
reference. Those citations and personalities that our efforts
fell short of their interpretation or identification have also
been properly recorded.
 In explaining the linguistic terms included in the treatise we
have made use of various dictionaries, old and modern,
foremost of which are: Lis n al- Arab and Matn al-lu a.
Unless otherwise helpful, no reference has been made to
any dictionary.
 We have adopted the same symbols and signs commonly
employed by editors of Arabic manuscripts. We conformed
to the modern spelling norms, and we enclosed requisite
contextual additions -i.e. explanatory insertions and
comments other than the writer's own words- within square
brackets [ ]; examples illustrating rules of encipherment
have been set off by round brackets (parentheses) ( ); book
titles in italics, quoted material and Prophetic traditions
have appeared within quotation marks “ ” , while floral
brackets  have been used to enclose Koranic verses.23
23
Translator's explanatory additions are placed between pairs of hyphens: -…-.
37
2.2 Description of the manuscript
The original manuscript is part of an assemblage of small-sized
sheets, comprising several treatises on such occult sciences as
numerology (z yir a), divination ( afr), al-awf q, geomancy,
talismans, and others. The assemblage is handwritten in fine
penmanship, and housed in 'As ad 'Afand 's Library of as-
Sulaymaniyya Ottoman Archives in Istanbul, under the number 3558.
The first sheet is an index, written by the scribe, of the titles of
treatises included. Each title is written in two lines, with the number of
the first sheet of each treatise affixed thereunder. The index reads as
follows:
"What is contained in this unique paper:
 ar ka f ar-r n f al-z yir a ................................................. 2
(Exposition of " " unveiling in "z yir a").
 ar bayt minh , by al- amr ............................................... 11
(al- amr 's exposition of a line of the above).
 'Isti r al-'a wiba min al- afr al- mi .............................. 14
(Drawing the answers out of the extensive afr).
 F naw m s al- aw riq lil- d t ............................................ 27
(On the laws of the supernatural).
 Man mat al-'Im m al-Sabt ................................................. 41
(al-'Im m al-Sabt 's poems).
 Mift al-Kun z f ' al-Marm z ...................................... 47
(Key to treasures on clarifying ciphers).
 all at- illasm f al-z yir a .................................................... 60
(Solution of talisman in z yir a).
 Ad-durra al-munta aba f al-'a wiba .................................... 63
(The gem: a collection of answers).
 F al-'awf q al-mu awwaqa .................................................... 67
(On confined 'awf q).
 'Istin q al-'a ruf min al-' y t ................................................ 74
(Elicitation of letters from Koranic verses).
 Ras 'il f al-raml, by Na r a - s ......................................... 77
(Na r a - s 's treatises on geomancy).
 Kit b al-'akt f ......................................................................... 80
(The book of al-'akt f).
38
 F al-mu ammas al- l al-wasa ........................................ 85
(On poetical quintets).
 Da aw t as-s t, by al-Ba n ............................................... 89
(al-Ba n 's invocations of times).
 F ilm al-'awf q, by al-qabb n ........................................... 102
(On al-'awf q science by: al-Qabb n ).
 ar sim al-hindiyya f al-wafq ............................................. 105
(On letters and their secrets)
 Kalim t ibn al a f al-waq 'i ............................................ 109
(ibn al a 's words on events).
 Bay n as-s a, by as-Suy ............................................... 121"
(On Doomsday)
Beside the last title the scribe has made this note:
" "(i.e. copied by the poor scribe),
immediately appended by a seal on which has been inscribed in
Persian-style Arabic script: "My lord, I ask Thee a creditable end". ibn
ad-Durayhim's treatise, whole and complete, occupies the pages 47/B
to 59/A, and closes with a colophon of the scribe's name and date of
copying.
39
Figure 2.1: A photocopy of the index of the assemblage incorporating
ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise
(Document No. 3558, as-Sulaym niyya Ottoman Archives, Turkey)
40
Figure 2.2: A photocopy of the first page of ibn ad-Durayhim's
treatise
41
Figure 2.3: A photocopy of a page of ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise
illustrating encipherment using the "branched" calligraphy
42
demonstrating the encipherment of the first of two examples.
43
demonstrating the encipherment of the second of two examples.
44
Figure 2.6: A photocopy of the encipherment of ibn ad-Durayhim's
second example as set out in ub al-'A 9/245.
(Published by al-Mu'assasa al-Mi riyya al- mma, 1963)
45
Figure 2.7: A photocopy of the last page of ibn ad-Durayhim's
treatise.
46
2.3 Ali ibn ad-Durayhim Treatise
on Cryptanalysis
(Original Arabic Text and English Translation)
47
Mift al-kun z f '
al-marm z
by
Al ibn ad-Durayhim
48
In the name of God
the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
[Introduction]
Glory be to God, who set out with the creation of the pen, disposeth
it on the guarded tablet, and dealt out tongues amongst nations. He is
the Omniscient, Knower of all secrets. Praise be to Him who made
known something of His knowledge. We profess that there is no god
but Allah, the One without partner, and that Mu ammad is His
prophet to all people and His favourite whom He brought so nigh to
Him, and made the seal of prophets. May God's blessing and peace
without end be upon him and his noble household and companions.
I had earlier written a book on the formulation of ciphers and their
cryptanalysis, which I called: ' al-mubham f all al-mutar am
(The clarification of ambiguities in cryptanalysing cipher texts). A
period of time had elapsed since I abridged it. I had no other copy in
my possession. Who must be obeyed, and whose request cannot be
refused, asked me to write this book. I have thus put down what came
to my mind of the rules and regulations of this art, and I have written
this preface in order to explain the sructure of the book and facilitate
its comprehension, God willing. I have called my book Mift al-
Kun z f ' al-Marm z (Key to treasures on clarifying ciphers). I
pray to God for help and success, most sufficient unto us is He in
whom we trust.
50
Know that cryptanalysing cipher texts and cryptograms is a very
worthy cause. It is indispensable in times of need, and useful in
understanding the symbols of the ancients in their sciences and books
and other material they have bequeathed.
* * *
[Essentials for those practicing cryptanalysis]
-The cryptanalyst's tools-
It is necessary for one experiencing cryptanalysis to develop a
thorough knowledge of the cryptogram language he seeks to
cryptanalyse, as well as the language grammar.
He should also know the frequency of occurrence of letters and
their order, such as long vowels which have the highest frequency of
occurrence in all languages. Letters of highest frequency in certain
languages are (a) "alif" in Arabic, (s) in Latin and Armenian, and (n)
in Mongol.
According to the numerical alphabet, all calligraphs have
detachable letters short of Mongol, Syriac and Arabic, of which
letters can be both detachable and conjoint. Syriac letters are detached
and conjoined as in Arabic.
52
The shortest of all calligraphs [alphabets] is Mongol, consisting of
17 letters; the longest Armenian: 36 letters; the Turkish 20 letters, and
as many for the Persian calligraph, with three letters in it not in the
Turkish, namely, h ( ‫)څـ‬, f (٫), and (‫)م‬. It follows that there are three
letters in the Turkish calligraph not there in the Persian, namely, (ٓ),
(ٛ) and q (‫)ٯ‬, with the letters: (‫)ػ‬, (٣), (‫)س‬, (ٗ) and (ٟ)
absent.
The Hebrew, Syriac and Astank ly calligraphs are made up of 22
letters each, i.e. from the letter (‫ )ا‬to the letter (‫ )د‬of the numerical
alphabet. The French and Latin are 27 letters; the old Latin and Greek
24 letters (these two have another calligraph of 30 letters for the
uncertain of their letters); the Coptic 32 letters (it also has a numerical
alphabet). One Hindi calligraph differs in their language from that of
their numerical alphabet which comprises 28 letters in nine forms with
the following orders: (٨‫اٌٲ‬, ‫ثٶو‬, ِ‫عٺ‬, ‫كٽذ‬, ‫څڂذ‬, ‫ڇٍـ‬, ‫ن‬٥‫ى‬, ٘‫ ؽٮ‬and ٠ٖٝ).
For some Indians there is another calligraph of 52 letters called the
triangular Hindi. The Sumerian calligraph is four letters less than the
Hebrew. The letters wanting, being from the Old Testament, are:
hamza (‫)ء‬, (‫)ػ‬, (٣) and h (‫ ;)څـ‬so for (‫إثواڅٍټ‬,, ‫ٍٸ‬٥‫إٍپب‬, ‫ إٍؾبٯ‬and ‫ٲڈة‬٦ٌ)
they say: ( ‫ثٍوٻ‬, ‫ّپڈٌٸ‬, ‫ ٌٖبٯ‬and ‫ )ٌبٱت‬respectively, with ( ‫)ٌبٱت‬
pronounced halfway between ‫ ي‬and ‫ ڇ‬and all in the same enunciation.
They have no such letter as (‫)ؿ‬, and the letters (٣) and hamza (‫)ء‬
may on occasion be pronounced as such, thus ( ‫ )إثواڅٍټ‬may be
pronounced (‫)إثوٻ‬, and would probably be enunciated (‫ اٷ‬٤‫)ٌْپ‬.
54
Encipherment methods are of various types, too many to
enumerate. I mean to mention the basic principles and rules that
govern their laws.
* * *
[Types of encipherment]
Some people opt for changing places of the letters within a

cryptogram, conformably with some criteria. This is called the
transposition type.
[1. On transposition]
 By writing a word in reverse, e.g. ( ‫ )ٽؾپل‬is enciphered:
(‫;)كٽؾټ‬ (ً‫ٺ‬٥: ٤‫)ٌٺ‬.
 By writing the last letter first thus: ( ‫ ٽؾپل‬: ‫) كٽؾټ‬, ( ً‫ٺ‬٥:
‫ٸ‬٦ٌ).
 By transposing the first letter of a word with the last, e.g.
(‫ ٽؾپل‬: ‫) كؽپټ‬, (ً‫ٺ‬٥: ٤‫)ٌٺ‬.
 By changing positions of even letters with odd letters, e.g.
( ‫ ٽؾپل‬: ‫) ؽپلٻ‬, ( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ً٦‫)ٹ‬. This rule may be extended for
application in multi-word texts; thus: ً‫ٺ‬٥ ‫ٽؾپل أفڈ‬
(plaintext) becames: ‫ڈٌٸ‬٥ ‫( ؽپلٻ فب‬ciphertext).
 By transposing the first letter of a word with the third
letter, e.g. ( ‫ڈك‬٦َ‫ٽ‬: ‫َپڈك‬٥), ( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ٤‫)ٌٺ‬, ( ‫أؽپل‬: ‫ ;)ٽؾأك‬or by
bringing every two consecutive letters in front of the
preceding two. This can be done throughout a multi-word
message, looking at it as an integral whole, e.g. ‫ڈك أفڈ‬٦َ‫ٽ‬
‫( أؽپل‬plaintext): ‫ڈٽَقڈك أٽلأػ‬٥ (ciphertext), or within
individual words, e.g. ‫ڈك أفڈ أؽپل‬٦َ‫ ٽ‬: ‫ڈٽَل ڇفأ ٽلأػ‬٥.
 By transposing the first letter of a word with the fourth,
e.g. ( ‫ڈك‬٦َ‫ٽ‬: ‫پل‬٦ٍ‫)ڇ‬, ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫)كؽپټ‬. This, again, may be
observed for a multi-word text, tackled as one integral
unit.
56
 By alternating one initial letter of a word with the
corresponding terminal one until the word is exhausted,
in terms of the ascending alternate horizontal
transposition, e.g. ( ‫ڈك‬٦َ‫ )ٽ‬is enciphered: ( ٣‫ )ٽلٍڈ‬, ( ‫ ٽؾپل‬:
‫ )ٽلؽټ‬and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ : ‫ٍٸ‬٥). This process also holds in multi-
word texts; that is by taking alternately one letter from the
beginning followed by the corresponding letter from the
end of the message until all are used. This method may be
performed the other way round, namely in term of the
descending alternate horizontal transposition, starting
from the end of the message by taking alternately one
letter from the end followed by the corresponding letter
from the beginning until all are used. Thus: ( ‫ڈك‬٦َ‫ ٽ‬is
enciphered: ٤ٍ‫)كٽڈ‬, ( ‫ ٽؾپل‬: ‫ )كٽپؼ‬and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ : ‫ٸ‬٦ٌ). This
process, again, also holds in multi-word texts.
 By taking the words of the text in pairs (1), transposing
the first letter of one word with the first letter of the other
word, e.g. ‫ټ ؽَڀ‬٥ ‫( ٽؾپل اثڀ‬clear): ‫َڀ‬٥ ‫( اؽپل ٽجڀ ؽټ‬cipher),
(2) or transposing the last letter of one word with the last
letter of the other, e.g. ‫ټ ؽَڀ‬٥ ‫( ٽؾپل اثڀ‬clear): ‫ڀ‬٥ ‫ٽؾپڀ اثل‬
‫( ؽَټ‬cipher), (3) or transposing the first letter of one with
the last letter of the other; so that the above example is
enciphered: ٤َ‫ځؾپل اثټ ځټ ؽ‬, (4) or transposing the last letter
of one with the first of the other, so that the above
example is enciphered: ‫ؼ ٽَڀ‬٥ ‫ٽؾپب كثڀ‬, (5) or, as an extra
measure, transposing the first letter of one word with the
first letter of the other, while simultaneously transposing
the last letter of one word with the last letter of the other.
Thus, the example: ‫ټ ؽَڀ‬٥ ‫ ٽؾپل اثڀ‬would be written in
cipher: ‫َټ‬٥ ‫اؽپڀ ٽجل ؽڀ‬, (6) or transposing the first
letter of one word with the last letter of the other, and the
last letter of one with the first letter of the other. In so
doing, the above example is enciphered: ٤َ‫ځؾپب كثټ ځؼ ٽ‬.
58
 By taking every other letter right through, dropping the
others for the time being, the intended plaintext is
obtained. Letters dropped are now considered in the same
way to complete the text, e.g. ‫ټ ؽَڀ‬٥ ‫( ٽؾپل اثڀ‬clear):
‫پپلؽبٍجڀ‬٦‫( ٽڂؾ‬cipher). You can also take one letter and
drop two till the end. You do the same with the second
letter, then with the third. So you write the above
example: ‫ڀ‬٥ ‫ ٽبٽؾجؾپڂَل‬. You may take one letter and
leave out the following one, or four, five, etc.. letters as
you please. Anyhow, it is advisable to separate words by
as many spaces as the cipher alphabets according to a
fixed rule. The above example would be written, using
the last mentioned method: ‫ڀ‬٥‫ٽبٻ ؽجؼ ٽڂٌ ك‬. From this a
good many configurations arise, all of which are the very
letters constituting a message, no more, no less, but
transposed.
[2. On substitution]
-Encipherment of this type can be exercised-:
 By always substituting a specific letter for another
according to a set key, as in the Qummi cipher
alphabet represented by this line of verse:
in which the letter m (‫ )ٻ‬is substituted for the letter k (‫)ٳ‬, and
vice versa, the letter o (‫ )ڇ‬for (‫ )ا‬and the other way round, and
so forth. Accordingly, the word ( ‫ )ٽؾپل‬, for instance, is
enciphered: (‫ٶو‬ٞ‫)ٵ‬, (ً‫ٺ‬٥: ٬‫)ٍچ‬, and (‫ڈك‬٦َ‫ ٽ‬: ‫َبه‬٦‫)ٵ‬.
60
There is another cipher alphabet represented by this verse:
so that the word (‫پو‬٥) is written in cipher: (ّٜ‫)ى‬.

And also the Fahlawi cipher alphabet:
e.g. ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫)مىمٯ‬, ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ : ‫)ځٍٸ‬, ( ‫پو‬٥ : ‫)ځنڇ‬. This relates to the
unregulated encipherment by substitution, which is generative of
innumerable cipher alphabets.
 Using the numerical alphabet order, by substituting for each letter
the one immediately following; thus the letter (‫ )ة‬is substituted
for (‫)ا‬, and (‫ )ط‬for (‫)ة‬, and so on until the end. The letter (‫ )ا‬is
substituted for (٧). This is because letters are like a circle, [i.e.
they are viewed as located on a circle circumference or a disc] in
that the last letter is replaceable by the first letter as if to follow
or preceded it. Example: ‫( ٽؾپل‬clear text): ‫ڂڄ‬ٞ‫( ځ‬cipher text).
You may substitute for each letter every third letter next to it, so
that ‫( ٽؾپل‬clear) becomes ‫( ٍٍَڈ‬cipher), and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ : ‫ ;)ٕڂٸ‬or every
fourth letter, so that ( ‫ ٽؾپل‬becomes: ‫ي‬٦‫ٶ‬٥) and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ : ‫ )ٱَټ‬and so
on and so forth till the end of letters. This results in 28 cipher
alphabets.
 By considering the numerical alphabet as composed of pairs of
letters; the substitution is performed between the letters within
each pair. So the word (‫ ٽؾپل‬is enciphered: ‫ )ځيځظ‬and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ : ٜ‫)ٍٶ‬.
The pairs are formed by systematically taking every letter with
the one immediately following it; or with every third letter next
to it, e.g. ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫)ٍڈٍت‬, ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ : ‫ ;)ځٍٸ‬or with every fourth, fifth,
etc.. letter next to it.
 Alternatively, -similar to this last-mentioned method- by
substituting for a letter the one preceding it. This would bring
about a number of cipher alphabets amounting to 58.
62
But care should be taken, while considering the 112 cipher
alphabets, that the encipherer is not Maghrebi, since the order of
letters in our numerical alphabet is different from the
Maghrebi's, which runs as follows: ‫أثغل‬, ‫څڈى‬, ًٞ‫ؽ‬, ‫ٵٺپڀ‬, ٘‫ٮ‬٦ٕ,
‫ٱوٍذ‬, ‫صقن‬, ِ٪١. And this is the order which a - ib , peace be
on his soul, adopted for assigning symbols to reciters [in a well-
known poem attributed to him on the Koranic modes of
reading].
 Adopting the alphabetical order, by substituting for each letter
the one immediately following, thus substituting the letter (‫)ة‬
for (‫ )ا‬, (‫ )د‬for (‫)ة‬, (‫ )س‬for (‫)د‬,etc. until the end. The letter (‫ )ا‬is
substituted for the (‫)ي‬. Examples: ‫( ٽؾپل‬clear): ‫( ځقڂن‬cipher),
( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫پب‬٩). You may substitute for each letter every third letter
next to it, so that the word ‫ ٽؾپل‬is enciphered either ‫ ڇكڇه‬in terms
of the key in which the letter (‫ )ڇ‬goes before the letter ( ‫)څـ‬, or
‫ څلڅو‬in terms of the key in which (‫ )ڇ‬follows ( ‫)څـ‬. Also, ً‫ٺ‬٥
(plain): ‫( ٭ڂت‬cipher). This brings forth a number of cipher
alphabets amounting to 29.
You can, in the same way, substitute for each letter the one
immediately preceding; thus the letter (‫ )ي‬is substituted for (‫)ا‬,
the letter (‫ )ا‬for (‫)ة‬, (‫ )ة‬for (‫)د‬, etc. Examples: ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫)ٹغٺـ‬,
(ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫ٶال‬١). This engenders 29 cipher alphabets, too.
 By considering the alphabet as composed of pairs of letters; the
substitution is done between the letters within each pair. The
pairs are formed by systematically taking every letter with the
one immediately preceding, e. g.: ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫)ٹغٺـ‬, ( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫ٶڈ‬١),
adopting the cipher alphabet in which the letter ( ‫ )څـ‬precedes the
letter (‫)ٿ‬. The (‫ )ال‬may be spared, or substituted leaving the (‫)ي‬
out. In this manner substitution can be conducted by taking
every letter with every second, third, fourth, etc. preceding
letter, as already mentioned. This would produce 58 cipher
alphabets, too.
64
Analogous to these four divisions in the Maghrebi system are 116
cipher alphabets. Their alphabet runs: (‫ا‬, ‫ة‬, ‫د‬, ‫س‬, ‫ط‬, ‫ػ‬, ‫ؿ‬, ‫ك‬, ‫م‬, ‫ه‬, ‫ى‬, ٛ,
ٟ, ‫ٳ‬, ‫ٷ‬, ‫ٻ‬, ‫ٿ‬, ٓ, ٗ, ٣, ٧, ٫, ‫ٯ‬, ً, ُ, ‫څـ‬, ‫ڇ‬, ‫ال‬, ‫)ي‬. In substituting for a
letter the immediately preceding one, the word ( ً‫ٺ‬٥), for instance,
becomes: (‫ٶال‬ٙ), and (‫ڈك‬٦َ‫ ٽ‬: ‫چـ‬ٚ‫)ٹٲ‬. All these cipher alphabets do not
involve any addition (augmentation) of letters.
[3. On the augmentation or reduction of the number of letters]

-This can be performed-:
 By repeating all letters, or only odd letters.
 By dropping a certain letter wherever it occurs, or choosing
pairs of letters with or without some charactaristic in common
-such as (ٟ ٛ) and (٣ ‫ )ة‬respectively-, and regarding them as
single letters throughout.
 By inserting an extra letter somewhere within each word, or
inserting a pair of similar or dissimilar letters, or adding a
certain letter (e.g. (‫ ))ا‬to one word and another letter (e.g. (‫ ))ة‬to
the next word, and so on until the end, using either the alphabet
(‫ا‬, ‫ة‬, ‫د‬, ‫س‬, …) or the numerical alphabet (‫)أثغل‬.
 By applying any of the above rules anywhere at will, thereby
producing many cipher alphabets.
[4. On the utilization of cipher devices]

 The chessboard, which can be utilized by assigning each square
to a letter. The message is sent by placing certain chessmen on
intended squares, and the reply is likewise received. In either
case the order of the alphabet (‫ا‬, ‫ة‬, ‫د‬, ‫س‬, …) or the numerical
alphabet (‫ )أثغل‬is observed.
66
 The punched board, with 28 holes standing for the letters. The
cryptogram is represented by a thread driven through the
intended holes so as to make a route defining the letters of the
message successively. To represent ‫أؽپل‬, for example, the thread
is driven through the holes: 1, 8, 13 and 4 consecutively, using
the numerical alphabet ( ‫)أثغل‬. The algorithm for decipherment,
regardless of the length of the cryptogram, is by reading the
letters through which goes the thread. For each hole you write a
letter. The order of letters is then reversed so that the last one is
made the first. By so reading to the first letter, you are correct.
[5. On the replacement of letters using the decimally-weighted

numerical alphabet]
 By substituting decimal numerical alphabet for letters in four
different ways: by writing the numbers in words as pronounced;
or by finger-bending, using the fingers to communicate the
message visually to a recipient; or by writing the numbers as
numerals, such as writing ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: fourty, eight, fourty, four); or by
giving the crytogram a semblance of a page of a financial
register.
 By reconverting the cryptogram numerals into a number of
letters ‫ ـ‬a method of encipherment which involves more
sophistication. There are many combinations that can be used in
this method; for example in ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ً‫ٹ‬. ‫ثڈ‬. ً‫ٹ‬. ‫ )اط‬or ( ‫ٵٴ‬. ‫اى‬. ‫ٵٴ‬.
‫)ثت‬. One can even form delusive words such as (‫ٌؾجٴ‬. ‫اثلا‬. ‫ڇٹل‬. ‫)عب‬,
or substitute two words for a letter, e. g. (ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫ٍجؼ‬. ً‫ڇڅبثبً عڈاكا‬. ‫)څلأ‬,
in which case a line is to be drawn over the two words to denote
that they represent one letter.
68
 By multiplying the number representing the letter by two, and so
write ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ٫ ‫ ٌڈ‬٫ ‫ )ػ‬and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫)ٳ ً ٱټ‬, etc.; or multiply it by
three, thus writing ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫ )ٌت ٱٴ ٵل ٱٴ‬and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ًٍ ٗ ‫)ٷ‬.
Numbers can also be multiplied by four or five.
[6. On the encipherment of letters by using words]

 By substituting for a letter its spelling, or by alternately writing
the straight spelling of one letter and the reversed spelling of the
next, e.g. ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫ )ٽٍپبؽپٍپالك‬and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫ٍڂپبٹٍب‬٥). One may start with
the reversed spelling followed by the straight, and so write
(‫أؽپل‬: ‫ )٭الؽب ٽٍپلاٷ‬and (ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫الٽبي‬٦ٍ‫)ځ‬.
The above rules may be partly applied in various ways, giving
rise to many ramifications.
 By feigning words, - conformably with a set rule -, in which the
intended letters are made to be the first letter of each word, so
that the word ( ‫)ٽؾپل‬, for example, may be enciphered:
( ٬‫)ٽب ؽبٷ ٽَٶٍڀ كځ‬, and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ً‫و٭ذ األٽو ٌٍَوا‬٥); or the last letter of
each word, where ( ‫ )ٽؾپل‬becomes: ( ‫جل‬٦‫ٺټ ٕوٌؼ ّټ اٹ‬١), and
( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ً‫ ٽبٷ أث‬٤ٍٙ); or the middle letter of each word, thus ( ‫)ٽؾپل‬
may be expressed: (‫)ٌپڀ ثؾت ّپٌ فله‬, and (ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫ٺى فٍو‬٥ ‫ل‬٥‫)ك‬, and
suchlike.
 By taking the second letter of each feigned word, e.g.
( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫لڃ‬٩ ‫پٸ‬٥ ‫)ٹټ ٌؾَڀ‬, and ( ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫ اٹٖجو فٍو‬٤‫ ;)ٽ‬or by taking the
third letter of each word throughout, e.g. ( ‫ٽؾپل‬: ‫)أٹټ أهؽٴ ٌڈٻ ځغل‬,
and (ً‫ٺ‬٥: ‫ذ ٱڈٹٴ ٭غٍذ‬٦‫)ٍپ‬, and so on.
70
 By taking from every three words the first letter of the first
word, the second letter of the second word and the third of the
third word, so the word ( ‫ل‬٦ٍ) would be enciphered:
( ‫ ٽٲلاهڃ‬٫‫و‬٦ٌ ‫ ;)ٍٍّل‬or by adopting odd letters only, i.e. the first,
third, fifth, etc., e.g. ً‫ٺ‬٥ ‫ټ‬٥ ‫( ٽؾپل اثڀ‬clear): ‫ٍټ‬٦‫ٽب ؽزټ ٱل ٱبهة ٽڀ ځ‬
‫پٸ فٍو‬٦‫( ث‬cipher); or even letters only, -i.e. the second, fourth,
sixth, etc.-, writing the same example in cipher thus:
(ً‫غٺڂ‬٦ٌ ‫ٍټ‬٦‫)ٵټ رؾڈٻ ٱلٽبي ثٍڀ ځ‬.
 By taking up one letter and leaving out the next two letters, e.g.
(ً‫ٺ‬٥ ‫ټ‬٥ ‫ٽؾپل اثڀ‬: ‫ٲڈٷ ٱبٌلح‬٥ ‫ٺڈٽچټ‬٥ ً‫)ٽب أؽَڀ ٽڂبكٽخ أٵبثو اٹڂب‬, and the
like. Conversely, some may start by leaving out rather than
taking up letters, so that, of the above example, the third, sixth,
ninth, etc. letters are taken. The cipher may look like this:
( ‫پٸ ٹلځٍبڃ‬٦ٌ ‫چب ٽڀ‬٦ٌٚ ‫)أٹټ أهؽپٶټ ثجلهح أڇعجذ أٿ‬, and so on. Another
method is by taking the first letter and then every fourth letter
throughout, so that in enciphering the words: ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ ‫ټ‬٥ ‫)ٽؾپل اثڀ‬,
you may write: (‫لڃ اٹزجغٍٸ ٹڄ‬٦ٍ ‫لٿ أٽبٿ‬٦‫)ٽڀ اٹؾَڀ ٹپڀ ٌزلٌڀ ثبٹٲوثى ٹغڂبة ٽ‬.
You can of course start by leaving out letters rather than taking
them, as already stated, with a feasibility of dropping four, five,
etc. of the extraneous letters at a time while taking one
throughout the cryptogram.
 The encipherer may choose to make his key known to the
recipient. One way of doing that is to agree that starting the
cryptogram with the letter (‫ )ا‬suggests to the recipient that every
second letter is to be taken, starting with the letter (‫ )ة‬means
that every third letter should be taken, starting with (‫ )ط‬means
that every fourth letter should be taken, and so on and so forth.
Some start by enciphering the opening: ( ‫)ثَټ اهلل اٹوؽپڀ اٹوؽٍټ‬,
from which the key is detected without toil and applied all
through.
 In so merging ciphertexts with plaintexts, the cryptogram may
be made to read backwords, i.e. from left to right.
72
 The encipherer can substitute for a letter a proper name, so that
every letter of the cryptogram is represented by the name of a
person. He may also build on the names of stars, mansions of
the moon, (either according to respective letters of the numerical
alphabet or at random; thus the lunar mansions are in
succession: ura n (for ‫)ا‬, Bu n (for ‫)ة‬, Pleiades (for ‫)ط‬, and so
on until the last one, Ra (for the letter ٧)), months (lunar,
Latin, Coptic, etc.), the number of days in a month, hours of the
day, days of the week and its hours, book names, suras of the
Koran, names of countries, ointments, drugs, an n t*, fruits,
trees, etc., or any other word of his choice repeated every time
the letter it represents occurs. The cryptographer may perform
that verbally, in writing, or as a picture or symbol, such as birds,
animals, plants or trees, whichever he pleases.
 It is well worth mentioning here the branched calligraph, which
is based on the words of the numerical alphabet , and
practicable in writing only - i.e. not feasible verbally -. The first
letter of the cryptogram is represented by a single branch on the
right of the trunk if that letter is one of the constituent letters of
the word (‫)أثغل‬, which is the first word of the numerical alphabet.
Likewise, if the second letter of the cryptogram is part of the
word ( ‫( )څڈى‬the second word of the numerical alphabet), it is
represented by two branches on the right of the next trunk, and
so on. Note that a maximum number of eight right branches is
possible, which is the total sum of the numerical alphabet words.
Now you look at the position of each letter of the cryptogram
within the word of the numerical alphabet of which it is part;
thus if the first letter of the cryptogram is , say, (‫ )ط‬you draw
three branches on the left of the first trunk, because (‫ )ط‬is the
third letter of the first word of the numerical alphabet. Similarly,
the letter (‫)ٿ‬, for example, is represented by four left branches
on the relevant trunk. Clrearly, a number of four left branches in
the maximum possibility for representing a letter, as none of the
numerical alphabet words comprises more than four letters.
*
-There is no reference whatsoever to " an n t" in Arabic dictionaries, hard as I
have searched, though. It might be a scribe's error.-
**
The numerical alphabet is: ‫أثغل‬, ‫څڈى‬, ًٞ‫ؽ‬, ‫ٵٺپڀ‬, ٔ‫ٮ‬٦ٍ, ‫ٱوّذ‬, ‫صقن‬, ٨٢ٙ; i.e. ‫أ‬, ‫ة‬, ‫ط‬,
‫ك‬, ‫څـ‬, ‫ڇ‬, ‫ى‬, ‫ػ‬, etc.
74
Example: ( ً‫ٺ‬٥ ‫ټ‬٥ ‫ )ٽؾپل اثڀ‬is enciphered using the branched
calligraph as follows: (*)
[7. On enciphering by relationship and diffusion method]

 Encipherment may be done by substituting for each letter of the
Arabic alphabet a generic name as follows:
The letter (‫ )ا‬is used for people; (‫ )ة‬for legume (vegetables); (‫)د‬
for dates, soil or spices; (‫ )س‬for clothing; (‫ )ط‬for leather; (‫ )ػ‬for
cereals or iron; (‫ )ؿ‬for wood; (‫ )ك‬for animals or ointments; (‫ )م‬for
gold; (‫ )ه‬for aromatic plants; (‫ )ى‬for glass; (ً) for weaponry or
fish; (ُ) for months, hair (or feeling) or chess; (ٓ) for dyes,
brass, gum or wool; (ٗ) for light or region; (ٛ) for birds; (ٟ)
for dark or deer; (٣) for perfume, eyes (or springs), or tooling;
(٧) for sheep; (٫) for fruits; (‫ )ٯ‬for village or reed; (‫ )ٳ‬for
books or planets; (‫ )ٷ‬for milk; (‫ )ٻ‬for towns; (‫ )ٿ‬for stars or
copper; (‫ )ڇ‬for wild animals, currency (coin), or paper; ( ‫ )څـ‬for
vermin, pests, etc.; (‫ )ال‬for pair of scissors or a sum of (‫ )ٷ‬and (‫)ا‬
(which is still better); and (‫ )ي‬for jewellery.
(*)
It is so in the original, but there is an error in branching the two letters (‫ )ا‬and (‫)ك‬.
76
This relates to what has been denominated "relationship and
diffusion", where a genus or species is representative of a letter.
From this emerge thirty-two cipher alphabets, the first of which is
unrestricted - or uncommitted -, the second is restricted - or committed
- to the letter (‫)ا‬, the third to the letter (‫)ة‬, and so on till the end of the
alphabet.
The encipherer may opt for making the first cipher alphabet
restricted to the letter (‫)ا‬, the second cipher alphabet to the letter (‫)ة‬,
and so on, changing the restriction either according to the numerical
alphabet (‫ )أثغل‬order or according to the alphabetical order (‫ا‬, ‫ة‬, ‫د‬, ‫)س‬.
Examples:
* of encipherment uncommitted to a certain cipher alphabet:
=
* of encipherment committed to the letter ( ):
=
=
=
=
=
and so forth.
78
Some generic names may contain a few letters which are difficult
to encipher. This requires the encipherer to be conversant enough with
language, to cope well and make the intended choice.
Encipherment committed to the numerical alphabet may be
exemplified thus:
‫ٺى اٹلڇاة = ٽؾپل‬٥ ‫ إهثٸ ثُوّڅب ٌُؾپٸ ٽڀ اٹغيٌوح‬,
while encipherment committed to the alphabet can produce
something like this:
‫ٺى اٹضٍواٿ = ٽؾپل‬٥ ‫ إهثٸ ثُوّڅب ٌُؾپٸ ٽڀ رجوٌي‬.
 Building on encipherment by substitution using generic names,
the cryptographer can express further purport quite different
from the apparent meaning, such as through commitment to
initial, second, middle, or terminal letters of words, as already
mentioned. He can apply the restriction to all the words of the
cryptogram or only to the words of genera intended in it.
Example: ‫ څبٹزڄ ثلهّح رجچو‬ٍٜ‫ ڇ‬٤ٕ‫چو ٽغڂً اٹپو‬١ ‫ڈٽبً ٭ٖلٽڄ‬ٞ‫هأٌذ ثؾٺت أٍلاً ؽ‬,
of which ( َ‫ ٽب ڇڅجذ‬٠‫ )هَةِ اؽٮ‬is formed by taking the first letter of each
word.
[8. A return to the type on the utilization of cipher devices]

 Some substitute for letters coloured beads threaded on a string
as a rosary. One way for so enciphering is to devote white beads
to serve as spaces between letters. The letter (‫ )ا‬is represented by
a yellow bead, the letter (‫ )ة‬by a blue one, (‫ )ط‬by a red, (‫ )ك‬a
green, ( ‫ )څـ‬a dark blue, (‫ )ڇ‬a black. Then beads are added in the
same order of colours by twos, i.e. two yellows to represent the
letter (‫)ى‬, two blues to represent (‫)ػ‬, etc. until you come to (‫)ٷ‬
with two balcks. Now you carry on with beads added by threes
in the same order, viz. 3 yellows to represent (‫)ٻ‬, 3 blues to stand
for (‫)ٿ‬, until you add 3 blacks to mark the letter (ٓ). Next, 4
yellows are made to represent (‫)ٯ‬, until 4 blacks are provided
for (‫)ؿ‬. Then 5 yellows designate (‫ )م‬in this way until all the
letters are exhausted. This type gives rise to scores of
ramifications.
80
It is even better to have the thread made of silk, and assign a certain
colour for each of the 28 letters represented by beads. The beads are
shuffled and recognized by their colours.
 Another device is based on writing the message on a folded

paper in such a way as to place part of a word on one edge of the
fold and the other part on the opposite edge, and so on till the
end of the message. The paper then is unfolded, thereby
concealing the writing, which looks like cipher. Once the paper
is folded, the message will come out.
This device, however, is not really an encipherment; therefore we
say that such matters need sound common sense lest the decryptor
should deviate from the right solution.
[9. On using invented symbols or signs to represent letters]

 In this type the encipherer devises symbols of his own, serving
as substitutes for the letters of the plaintext. We shall give two
examples on cryptanalysing this type of encipherment [at the
end of the book]. The technique is to write beneath each letter of
the alphabet a distinctive symbol representing that letter. The
symbols are unmistakably substituted for the letters. Spaces
between the words of the cryptogram can be filled up with
hyphens, dots, blanks, circles, or, in the interest of complicating
the cipher, with symbols similar to those devised for letters. This
would add to the beginner's difficulty in cryptanalysis.
Furthermore, extra symbols, namely nulls may also be added in
order to make cryptanalysing yet more intricate.
82
Most of the earlier cryptographers represented a geminated letter
by doubling it, -unlike later encipherers, who expressed gemination by
one letter only-.
Cryptanalysing the afore-stated and all kindred ciphers needs a
'genial' introduction that serves as a guide.
[Morphological introduction]
The shortest length of an Arabic word is one letter, such as: , ,
, , . These are verbs in the imperative, the past of which pertain to
the so-called "al-laf f al-mafrouq"; i.e. (‫ڇأډ‬, ‫ڇ٭ى‬, ‫ڇٱى‬, ‫ڇكډ‬, and ‫ى‬٥‫)ڇ‬
respectively. Some Arabic words consist of two letters, e.g. (of verbs):
( ) and ( ); (of articles): ( ‫ٽڀ‬, ً‫٭‬, ‫هة‬, ‫څٸ‬, ‫ثٸ‬,) etc.; (of indeclinable
nouns): (‫مي‬, ‫ما‬, ْ‫ٽَڀ‬, ‫( ;)ٵټ‬of combinations of pronouns and
prepositions): ( ‫ثٴ‬, ‫)ٹڄ‬. Some other words (articles, verbs and nouns)
are made up of three, four and five letters.
84
There are ten affixing letters; namely, ( ‫څـ‬, ‫ڇ‬, ‫ي‬, ‫د‬, ‫ا‬, ‫ٷ‬, ً, ‫ٻ‬, ‫ أ‬and
‫)ٿ‬, rounded up skillfully four times in the following line of verse by
Sheik am l id-D n ibn M lik:
In addition to three more letters; i.e., ٫, prepositional ‫ة‬, and ‫( ٳ‬of

comparison as well as that used in addressing the second person). A
word can be made longer by adding from these affixing letters. The
possible length of a word so formed is fourteen letters at the very
most. By "word" I do not mean the definition of grammarians, to
whom even a pronoun is a word, but I mean the definition of writers
and according to the way they counted the words of the Koran. For
instance, you say addressing two owners of orchards or gardens:
( ) or ( ). These, if ciphered in terms of
the afore-mentioned methods of encipherment, will produce such a
number of letters amounting to 37 for the one, and 38 for the other
respectively.
Note that Arabic has no four- or five-letter root words devoid of at
least one of the "liquid letters" - al-hur f a - alaqiyya -; i.e. the
letters: ( ‫ٷ‬, ‫ ٿ‬and ‫ ;)ه‬and the labial letters like: ( ٫, ‫ ٻ‬and ‫)ة‬, with a
few exceptions, e.g. ‫َغل‬٥ (= gold).
The maximum length of an Arabic noun prior to affixation is five
letters (with exceptions such as: ‫ڂلٹٍت‬٥); and the maximum length of a
verb before affixation is four letters.
Note as well that there is no word in the Holy Koran with a
five-letter root except for those proper names of non-Arabic origins,
as (‫)إثواڅٍټ‬.
86
The same letter can be repeated in one word no more than five
consecutive times. In the example, ( , the first ‫ٳ‬
in the word ( ) is for comparison, the last for addressing the

second person singular, and ( ) is the plural of ( ), which is a
vessel or a large boat. Other examples in point are: ( ) (singular):
( ) (plural); ( ) (singular): ( ) (plural). The following words
contain the letter ( ) repeated four times in each: ( ,
and ).
In several words, a letter can be successively repeated as many
times as nine at most. Consider this verse:
In which the first (‫( )كك‬dad) means play or frivolity, the second is a
name of a particular place, and the last is a proper noun of person in
the vocative case.
Note also that there are letters that are noncombinable with each
other in anterior nor in posterior position, some others are combinable
in either anterior or posterior position only.
Those letters which are noncombinable at all are:
‫ س‬: does not combine with any of these letters: (‫م‬, ‫ى‬, ً, ٓ, and ٗ).
88
‫ط‬: does not combine with (ٛ, ٟ, ٧, ‫ ٯ‬or ‫)ٳ‬. The word ( ‫غڀ‬ٝ) is not
Arabic (it is Nabatean), nor all the following words - most of
them being Arabized Persian -: ( , , , , ,
, , , , , , , ). The
word ( ) is also Arabized Persian meaning partridge (a bird).
‫ ك‬: does not combine with ٟ.
‫ م‬: does not combine with (‫ى‬, ٓ, ٗ, ٛ, ٟ). The word ‫جوىم‬ٝ (=
sugar) is also Arabized Persian, with two more possibilities in
common parlance; i.e. (‫جوىٷ‬ٝ) and (‫جوىٿ‬ٝ).
‫ ى‬: does not combine with (ً, ٓ, ٗ, ٛ, ٟ). The word ( ‫وى‬ٝ) is
Persian, the word ( ّٛ‫ )اٹ ّي‬is Nabatean, and the word ( ‫ )ٍي‬is the
imperative form of the Persian verb ( ‫)ٍبى‬. Also the word ( ‫ )ٍي‬is
Turkish meaning : you [plural].
90
ً : does not combine with (ٓ, ٗ, ٟ).
ٓ : does not combine with (ٗ, ٟ).
ٗ : does not combine with (ُ, ٟ).
ٛ : does not combine with (ٟ).
‫ ٯ‬: does not combine with (٧) nor with ‫ ٳ‬in a word root, with the
exception of (َٰ٪َ َ‫( )ځ‬of a crow, to caw; of a she-camel, to ‫پذ‬٪‫)ث‬.
‫ ٳ‬: does not combine with (‫ )ؿ‬in a word root.
‫ ٻ‬: does not combine with (‫ة‬, ٫) in a word root except in the word
(‫)٭ټ‬. The word (‫=( )ثَټ‬the lowest string of the lute) is non-Arabic.
The guttural letters - ‫ء‬, ‫څـ‬, ٣, ‫ػ‬, ٧, ‫ ؿ‬- are noncombinable with one
another save the letter ( ‫)څـ‬, which follows other gutturals in a word at
end position as an affixing letter denoting feminine form or a pronoun.
It also goes after letter (٣) as a basic letter as in: ( ‫چل‬٥, ‫چڀ‬٥). Over and
above this, no two gutturals are possible in one root word. However,
the letter ( ‫ )څـ‬may occur after another gutturals, but with a third letter
separating the two gutturals, such as in: ( ‫ٍچت‬٩, ‫جچو‬٥). The word ( ‫)ؽٍّچٸ‬
are compounds.
92
Accordingly, no two of these five gutturals ( ‫څـ‬, ‫ػ‬, ٣, ٧, ‫ )ؿ‬occur
together anteriorly in a word besides that mentioned above; nor do
they occur in the middle of a word, except the letter ( ‫ )څـ‬with the letter
(٣) as in: ( ٤‫ ;)څٺ‬the letter ( ‫ )څـ‬with (٧) as in ( ٨ٍ‫ ;)أڅ‬and ( ‫ )څـ‬with (‫)ؿ‬
which produces only the word ( ).
The basic ( ‫ )څـ‬does not combine at all with (‫)ػ‬, whereas ‫ ؿ‬does
combine with (٣); e.g. ( , , ). The letter (‫ )ػ‬is not
combinable with (‫)ؿ‬, nor with (٣) except in a compound word such as:
( , ).
The repetition of the same letter in one word is in common use.
Examples: ( , , , , , , , ,
, , , , , ). These belong under
double letters. Other examples are: ( , , , ) and the like -
geminated letters -. The repeated letter may be such an inherent part of
the word, e.g. ( , , , , , ).
94
Letters combinable in anterior position only or in posterior position
only:
[The letter] ‫ س‬is noncombinable with (ُ) in anterior position.
[The letter] ‫ ك‬is noncombinable with (‫ى‬, ٓ, ٛ) in anterior position.
That is why [the letter] ‫ ى‬in the word ‫[ ٽچڂلى‬engineer] has been
replaced by (ً) when Arabized; so we say: (ً‫ )ٽچڂل‬and (‫)ٽچڂلٍخ‬.
[The letter] ‫م‬ is also noncombinable in anterior position with
(‫ط‬, ً, ُ, ٣). The word ( ‫ )اٹٮبٹڈمط‬is Persian; when Arabized it became
(‫)٭بٹڈمٯ‬. Some people pronounce the word (‫ )اٷڅڈمط‬wrongly so; the right
form should be ( ‫ )اٷڅڈكط‬with (‫ )ك‬rather than (‫)م‬. The same applies to the
word )‫)ٍبمط‬. The word (‫ )اٹَڂجبمط‬is also Persian.
However, [the letter] ‫ م‬can combine anteriorly only with the letter
(‫ )ط‬providing that they are separated by one or two letters in between;
e.g. (‫ثبمهڇط‬, ‫ثبمڅڂظ‬, ‫ثبمهځغجڈٌڄ‬, ‫اٍٮٍناط‬, ‫)ثبمځغبٿ‬.
[The letter] ُ is not combinable in posterior position with any of
these letters: (‫ى‬, ً, ٓ).
[The letter] ٛ is noncombinable in anterior position with [the letter]
‫ ٳ‬in a root word.
You ought to know the letters that do not occur initially in a word,
such as the letter (‫ )ط‬which does not go initially before (‫د‬, ٓ, ٗ, ٧).
However, the word: ( ّٔ‫ )اٹغ‬is Arabized. The word ( ‫)اٹٖڂغخ‬, where the
third letter (‫ )ٿ‬separates (ٓ) and (‫)ط‬, is debated among scholars as to
whether it is originally Arabic or Arabized; the fact is that it is
Arabized.
96
You should also know the letters that are seldom combinable with
each other, such as ( ) after ( ) in ( ), the letter ( ) before ( ) in
( , ), the letter ( ) with ( ) as in: ( ), the letter ( ) with

the letter ( ) as in: ( , ), the letter ( ) before ( ) as in: ( )
(imperative), the letter ( ) after the inherent ( ) as in: ( , ).
Finally you should know that the letters that can be repeated at the
beginning of words are necessarily any of the following ten letters:
(‫ٳ‬, ‫ٷ‬, ‫ٻ‬, ‫ٿ‬, ‫د‬, ‫ا‬, ‫ة‬, ‫ڇ‬, ٫ and ‫)ي‬, of which the least frequently repeated
is )‫)ي‬.
[Algorithm for cryptanalysis]

Setting out to cryptanalyse a cryptogram, you begin first of all by
counting the symbols in it, and then count the times of recurrence of
each symbol and set down the totals individually. In case the
cryptographer has elaborated his encipherment, i.e. by concealing the
space within letters, you engage in working out the space first. The
algorithm is to take a letter and assume the next letter to be the space,
according to the rules I have already decided for you, and having
regard for the possible combinations of letters of which the words may
be composed. You keep trying, turning your assumption to the next
letter after the second one and the next after that, and so on, until all
spaces are detected and the words of the cryptogram appropriately
separated.
98
Subsequently you match the symbol or letter frequency of
occurrence in the cryptogram against the pattern of letter frequency
previously mentioned. Bear in mind the following frequency order of
Arabic letters (in descending order): (‫ا‬, ‫ٷ‬, ‫ٻ‬, ‫ي‬, ‫ڇ‬, ‫ٿ‬, ‫څـ‬, ‫ه‬, ً, ‫ة‬, ‫ٳ‬, ‫د‬,
٣, ٫, ‫ٯ‬, ‫ك‬, ‫م‬, ‫ال‬, ‫ػ‬, ‫ط‬, ٓ, ‫ؿ‬, ُ, ٗ, ‫ى‬, ‫س‬, ٛ, ٧ and ٟ).
This is the letter order of frequency in the Holy Koran, although
this order may differ in other language usages. Some deliberately
encipher poetry and prose, dispensing with the letter (‫)ا‬, or without
letter-dotting or without idle particles [those that do not affect the
parsing of what follows]. The normal order of letter frequency may
particularly be different when the cipher has few letters, i.e. when it is
too short to cover a whole rotation of the letter order, and
consequently not allowing for proper matching. Hence the prime
significance of the message being long enough.
On cryptanalysing a cipher, the most frequently occurring letter is
considered to be the letter (‫ ;)ا‬the next most frequent letter should in
all likelihood be (‫)ٷ‬, and what should lend credit to your conjecture is
the fact that in a majority of contexts, (‫ )ٷ‬follows (‫)ا‬. - to form the
definite article -. You then look into the cipher to see if it contains a
letter of single occurrence throughout. That you would think likely to
be (‫)ال‬, on account of the scarce occurrence of the imperative single
letters mentioned earlier.
Then the first words you try to work out in the message are the
bigrams - two-character words - through somehow trying to have
access to the most feasible combinations of their letters, until you are
sure you have discovered something correct in them. You then
examine their forms and write down the equivalents by them
- whenever they occur in the message -. You apply the same principle
to trigrams - three-character words - until you are sure you have got
something, and write out the equivalents - all through the message -.
Tackle tetragrams and pentagrams likewise. Whenever in doubt, posit
two or three or more probable conjectures and write each one down.
Wait until one of the conjectures proves to be the good one from
cryptanalysing other parts of the cipher. Once this is done, you
proceed as such in the rest of the cipher.
100
Remember that the letter preceding the definite article (‫ )اٷ‬at the
beginning of a word may, all often, be one of these letters: (‫ة‬, ٫, ‫ ٳ‬or
‫)ڇ‬.
A starter cryptanalyst should have each word of the cipher written
separately - to set him going -, and poetry should be written to him in
such a way as to enable him by the aid of metre to solve some letters
like: ( ‫( )څـ‬denoting feminine form), (‫( )د‬also denoting femininity), (‫)ي‬
(indicating the first person singular), vowels, and the like.
[Example 1]
As an example, let us consider the following lines written in cipher
[by substitution using devised symbols for letters]:
For cryptanalysis, we start first of all on counting the frequency of

occurrence of each symbol right through the cryptogram, affixing the
frequency numbers to symbols as follows:
102
We notice the symbol ( ) has far and away higher frequency of
occurrence than all others. We conclude, therefore, that it must be the
letter (‫)ا‬, and mark it so on the cryptogram.
The next frequently-occurring symbol is found to be ( ), and so we
settle our choice on the letter (‫)ٷ‬, supporting our belief by its
occurrence immediately after (‫ )ا‬in seven places of the text. We then
trace a single symbol representing a word, which we assume to be (‫)ال‬.
We also notice that the third word is a bigram, the other letter of
which is ‫ال‬. That means it might be one of these possibilities: ( ‫ثال‬, ‫رال‬,
‫عال‬, ‫ؽال‬, ‫فال‬, ‫ٍال‬, ‫ال‬٥, ‫ال‬٩, ‫٭ال‬, ‫ٵال‬, ‫څال‬, ‫)ڇال‬.
But yet we realize that the first symbol of that bigram, i.e. , is
repeated elsewhere as initial letter of a word where it is supposed not
to admit being any of these letters: (‫ط‬, ‫ػ‬, ‫ؿ‬, ً, ٣, ٧ or ‫)څـ‬. Thus we
rule out the possibilities: ( ‫عال‬, ‫ؽال‬, ‫فال‬, ‫ٍال‬, ‫ال‬٥, ‫ال‬٩ and ‫ )څال‬and retain
the rest, namely: (‫ثال‬, ‫رال‬, ‫٭ال‬, ‫ ٵال‬and ‫)ڇال‬.
Then we notice that the fifth word is a bigram, too, with its second
letter being (‫)ا‬. So it might be one of the following words: ( ‫ثب‬, ‫عب‬, ‫كا‬, ‫ما‬,
‫ٍب‬, ‫ّب‬, ‫ب‬ٙ, ‫٭ب‬, ‫ٽب‬, ‫ ځب‬or ‫)ٌب‬. Seeing that the frequency of the symbol ( ) is
higher than that of all other symbols, we conclude that it would
probably be one of these letters: (‫ٻ‬, ‫ ي‬or ‫)ٿ‬. Because ( ‫ )ځب‬is less
common in use, the letter (‫ )ٿ‬is excluded as unlikely. Therefore the
bigram has to be either ( ‫ )ٽب‬or ( ‫)ٌب‬. We realize, too, that that symbol
( ) succeed the symbol associated with (‫)ال‬, which we believe is
(‫ة‬, ‫د‬, ٫, ‫ ٳ‬or ‫ )ڇ‬in the trigram ( ). We match the letters with the
letter (‫ )ٻ‬and get the word ( ‫ )رزټ‬only; then try them again with the letter
(‫ )ي‬and the word )ً‫ )٭ٮ‬comes out.
104
Subsequently, we find the symbol ( ) repeated no more than four
times throughout. That gives us a strong impression that it is the letter
(٫), and not (‫)ي‬, owing to the high frequency expected of the latter in
cryptograms such as this length. Thus we fix on the third word being
( ‫)٭ال‬, the fifth ( ‫)ٌب‬, the fifteenth ( ً‫)٭ٮ‬, and the single letter (‫)ال‬. Our
guess is further promoted by the repetition, in the eleventh word after
(‫)اٷ‬, of two letters followed by (‫ )ا‬and another letter. In this case no
letter but (‫ )ٻ‬could possibly be repeated when checked against the
letters, so we say: (‫اٹپپبد‬, ‫اٹپپبػ‬, ‫اٹپپبه‬, ً‫اٹپپب‬, ٣‫)اٹپپب‬.
We also observe that the frequency of the symbol ( ) comes next
to that of (‫ا‬, ‫ ٷ‬and ‫)ي‬, so we conclude it should be any of these
possibilities: (‫ه‬, ً, ‫ د‬or ٣), considering that the letter (‫ )ٻ‬is already
made out, and that it cannot be (‫ )ٿ‬either. Thus we mark the symbol
for (‫ )ٻ‬in its locations.(*)
The symbol ( ) is found to be the initial letter of the fourth trigram
of which the middle and terminal letters have already been
cryptanalysed as (‫ )ٷ‬and (‫ )ٻ‬respectively. On identifying it with the
above letters, the letter (‫ )ه‬is eliminated, and the word is quite sure to
be one of these: (‫ٍٺټ‬, ‫ رٺټ‬or ‫ٺټ‬٥).
In the word next to (‫اٹپپبد‬, ٣‫اٹپپب‬, ً‫ )اٹپپب‬there is a letter prior to (‫)اٷ‬
which might be (‫ة‬, ‫ ٷ‬or ‫)ڇ‬, the letter (٫) having already been
designated.
(*)
There may be an omission or distortion in scribing this paragraph.
106
We also notice that the symbol ( ) succeeds (‫ )اٷ‬just before (‫)ي‬. It
is found between two ( )'s in a three-character word that might be ( ‫اثب‬,
‫اما‬, ‫ اٍب‬or ‫)اځب‬. We match the word against the letters (‫ة‬, ‫م‬, ً and ‫ )ٿ‬on
condition that (ً) be the terminal letter, but no intelligible vocable is
obtained; thus the word (‫ )ٍٺټ‬is dropped as irrelevant.
Then we try the word again as before, provided that (٣) this time be
the terminal letter, from which get out, after the initial letter, the word
( ٣‫)اٹجٍب‬. We try once more with the letter (‫ )د‬and derive these words:
( ‫اٹجٍبد‬, ‫ اٹڂٍبد‬and ‫)اٹٍَبد‬. Hence the letter (‫ )م‬is excluded and the words:
(‫اثب‬, ‫ اٍب‬and ‫ )اځب‬are retained.
Looking into the seventh word, a trigram of which the initial letter
is (‫)ٷ‬, the middle is this symbol ( ), and the terminal is ( ) which
can be either (٣) or (‫)د‬, we derive the word ( ‫)ٹَذ‬, dropping the letters
(‫ )ة‬and (‫)ٿ‬. With the (‫ )ة‬dropped, the (٣) is also dropped from the
word ( ٣‫ )اٹجٍب‬ipso facto. That is why the word ( ٤َ‫ )ٹ‬is eliminated. It
follows that the words: ( ‫ )اٹٍَئبد‬and its counterpart ( ‫)اٹپپبد‬, and also
the trigram ( ‫ )رٺټ‬are now hit right, and that the word ( ‫ٺټ‬٥) turns out
irrelevant. So we mark the letters (‫ )د‬and (ً) in their locations, thus
forming the trigram ( ‫)اٍب‬. As yet the following words of the
cryptogram have been made out: ( ً‫)٭ال رٺټ ٌب ٹَذ اٹپپبد ال اٍب ٭ٮ‬, with
the letter just preceding (‫ )اٹٍَئبد‬still obscure.
108
We examine the tenth [word], also a trigram with the two letters
(‫ )د‬and (‫ )ي‬already clear. We check it against the letters, and come
away with the word ( ‫ )ؽزى‬only, marking the letter (‫ )ػ‬all through the
cipher.
We switch over to a five-character word, with all its characters
already laid open except the middle letter; thereby we put forward
these possibilities: ( ‫ؽَواد‬, ‫ؽَٶبد‬, ‫)ؽَڂبد‬. Seeing that the symbol ( )
occur at higher frequency than all letters other than (‫ا‬, ‫ٷ‬, ‫ ي‬and ‫)د‬, we
fix upon the word (‫)ؽَڂبد‬, the letter (‫ )ٻ‬having already turned out well.
We indicate the (‫ )ٿ‬in its positions.
Then we consider the symbol ( ) as the initial letter in two three-
character words; of the one we have already known the letters (‫ ٿ‬and
‫)ي‬, and of other the letters (‫ ٷ‬and ‫)ي‬. We attempt the letter and find
that it could probably be either (٣ or ‫)ڇ‬, and so conclude these
possibilities: (ً‫ڂ‬٥, ً‫ڇځ‬, ً‫ٺ‬٥, ً‫)ڇٹ‬. But our choice is settled on the letter
(٣) because the frequency of this letter does not rise up to the order
of (‫(ڇ‬.
Our attention is also drawn to a heptagram (seven-character word)
of which just one letter is still covert. Upon experimentation with
letters, no other word than (‫ )اٹجٍزبٿ‬arises.
[The letter ‫ ]ة‬is represented by this symbol ( ) prior to the word
‫اٹٍَئبد‬, and so it is labelled in its due positions.
We try likewise at a hexagram (six-character word), the third letter
of which is yet concealed. The word (‫ )اٹٶزبة‬shows up.
110
We now consider the five-character word preceding the current
word by two. It has the middle letter still obscure. We experiment with
the letters and get the words: ( ٬‫ٹپغڂ‬, ٬‫ ٹپلځ‬and ٬‫)ٹپٖڂ‬. Of these the
context renders necessary the choice of ( ٬‫ )ٹپٖڂ‬as it is the fittest of all
three to chime in with the word (‫)اٹٶزبة‬. So we designate the letter (ٓ).
The same procedure is repeated with the last word, the fourth letter
of which is yet close. In consequence of experimentation with letters,
the word ( ً‫ )اٹپڈٕٺ‬turns out clear, and this gives rise to uncovering the
word (‫ )أٍٺڈ‬following (‫)ٹَذ‬. Thus we label the letter (‫)ڇ‬.
We now look at the first word, a bigram starting with the letter )ٓ),
the manipulation of which we have purposely delayed on account of
the infrequency of its letters. Identification unveils the word ( ّ‫)ٕل‬.
Labelling the letter (‫ )ك‬in its locations, we run across another bigram
ending with the letter (‫)ك‬, which we match against the rest of letters
unrevealed as yet. These words get out: (‫عل‬, [‫]فل‬, ‫ ٱل‬and ‫)څل‬.
Then we take up a trigram, the middle letter of which is represented
by the symbol ( ), the initial and terminal letters being (‫ )د‬and (‫)ٷ‬
respectively. Consequent upon matching the word against the four
letters: (‫ط‬, ‫ؿ‬, ‫ ٯ‬and ‫)څـ‬, the letter ( ‫ )څـ‬is dropped as unfeasible, and
these words: (‫رغٸ‬, ‫ رقٸ‬and ‫ )رٲٸ‬remain as possibilities.
It is brought home to us from the context that the word before ( ‫)أٍب‬
is ( ), and the trigram ( ); thus the statement goes: (‫)ال رٲٸ ٱل أٍب‬.
We seek the sixth word, with all its component letters already
unfolded except the second. On experimentation with the rest of
letters, we come away with the word ( ً‫نڇٹ‬٥). The letter (‫ )م‬is thus
indicated in its positions on the cryptogram.
112
We examine the trigram placed between the words: ( ٬‫ )ٹپٖڂ‬and
( ‫)اٹٶزبة‬. This trigram starts with the symbol ( ) followed by (‫)ما‬. The
word is decided to be (‫)څنا‬, and the letter (‫ )څـ‬is pointed out throughout.
The pentagram in between ( ً‫ )٭ٮ‬and ( ‫ )ٽڂڄ‬is as much treated to
unfold the fourth letter yet covert. The result is the word (‫)اٹڈعڄ‬.
The second to last word, a heptagram, is likewise tackled to unveil
the fourth and only remaining letter in the cipher. The word ( ‫)اٹلهٌچټ‬
flows.
Cryptanalysis thereupon is done, and the plaintext is now
developed full and for good:
- Do not you blame, oh, my admonisher;

Never in all my life shall I forget his love.
Say not he wronged me; for each flaw in him
He had myriads of virtues.
This verse is by the author of this treatise Al ibn ad-Durayhim al-
Maw il .-
It is after this pattern that cryptanalysis is carried out. Notice, in
this example, how no more than 21 letters of the 28-letter alphabet
were used to make the cryptogram. A look at the order of letter
frequency in the Glorious Koran demonstrates that the 8 remaining
letters in fact come last in the order of letters. It so happened that they
did not mix up with one another in anterior nor posterior position. But
that was only a fortuity, because a letter may occur near to its normal
order, as has previously been stated. Hence, in the above cryptogram,
the letters: (‫ي‬, ‫ د‬and ‫ )څـ‬occurred at higher frequency than the letter
(‫)ٻ‬.
The fact remains that it is really essential to gain acquaintance with
the approximate order of letter frequency by matching against the
words and developing from context.
114
[Example 2]
let us give another example to further illustrate algorithms towards
cryptanalysis:
We start straight away to count the frequency of occurrence of

symbols, and affix the frequency number to each, as in example 1
above, thus:
116
On scrutinizing the symbols we learn that the highest frequency is
for the symbol , then the following, in descending order: , , ,
and (equally), and (equally), , and and (equally).
That order makes an impression that the symbol represents the letter
(‫ )ا‬and the symbol the letter [‫]ٷ‬, being higher in frequency than all
others. Our notion is based on the fact that (‫ )ٷ‬all often goes after (‫)ا‬
- to form the definite article -, not so here. The situation gives
evidence to the contrary. We so realize that the symbol is (‫ )ا‬and
this is (‫)ٷ‬, marking them both in their positions on the cryptogram.
The second word holds our attention on the spot: a trigram with the
letter (‫ )ٷ‬repeated as initial and middle letters. We match the word
against the letters and find the letter ( ‫ )څـ‬only, which we label
throughout as the terminal letter, and thus come away with the word
(‫)هلل‬.
We then search the fifth word, a pentagram with the fourth letter
still unknown. In consequence of experimentation the following
possibilities turn up: ( ‫اٹچجب‬, ‫اٹچغب‬, ‫ اٹچپب‬and ‫)اٹچڂب‬. We note that the letter
we are seeking have the highest frequency of all letters next to (‫ )ا‬and
(‫ ;)ٷ‬so we attach credence to the letter (‫)ٻ‬, leaving room for (‫)ٿ‬, too,
and dropping the letters (‫ )ة‬and (‫)ط‬. We resolve on (‫ )ٻ‬as the choice in
the light of its occurrence before (‫ )ا‬in two bigrams. Thus the letter (‫)ٻ‬
is designated throughout.
We also observe that (‫ )ٻ‬is followed by a letter that could, together
with ‫ٻ‬, be one of these bigrams: ( ‫ٽل‬, ‫ٽن‬, ‫ٽو‬, ٌ‫ٽ‬, ٔ‫ٽ‬, ٜ‫ٽ‬, ٤‫ ٽ‬and ‫)ٽڀ‬.
Seeing that that letter occurs at high frequency, with that bigram
repeated three times in the cipher, we hold the bigram to be ( ‫)ٽڀ‬, and
rule out the others as irrelevant possibilities, labelling the (‫ )ٿ‬in its
locations.
118
Next we consider this frequent symbol before the definite article
at the beginning of words. According to the letter order of occurrence
we fix upon the letter (‫)ڇ‬.
We survey the last word of the cryptogram, the terminal letter of
which is its fourth letter unknown as yet. Giving it a trial, we obtain
the words: (‫ڇاٹجچټ‬, ‫ڇاٹزچټ‬, ‫ڇاٹغچټ‬, ‫ڇاٹلڅټ‬, ‫ڇاٹَچټ‬, ‫ڇاٹْچټ‬, ‫ ڇاٹٮچټ‬and ‫)ڇاٹٍچټ‬.
The symbol in this last word - of the cryptogram - occurs in a
bigram before another letter of which frequency of occurrence comes
next to (‫)ا‬, (‫ )ٷ‬and (‫ ;)ٻ‬hence we say it might be (‫)ي‬. Our belief is
enhanced through another word, with this very symbol still covert.
The word (‫ )اٹڂچى‬comes out, and thereby the preceding word ( ً‫)أڇٹ‬, too.
Deciding on (‫)ي‬, we match the symbol against it and come away with
(ً‫ )ث‬and (ً‫)٭‬.
We move on to a pentagram, with this symbol standing for the
fourth letter, followed by another letter which we experiment with )‫)ة‬
and (٫), and elicit these words: ( ‫اٹٺجش‬, ‫اٹٺجل‬, ٌ‫اٹٺج‬, ٜ‫اٹٺج‬, ‫اٹٺجٴ‬, ‫اٹٺٮذ‬, ‫اٹٺٮظ‬,
‫اٹٺٮؼ‬, ٠‫ اٹٺٮ‬and ٰ‫)اٹٺٮ‬.
Next we find this symbol ( ) representing initial letter in a word,
followed by a double (‫)ٷ‬. On trail, these words develop: ( ‫كٹّٺڄ‬, ‫ٵٺٺڄ‬, ‫ رٺٺڄ‬,
‫عٺٺڄ‬, ‫ؽٺٺڄ‬, ‫ٺٺڄ‬١ and ‫)ٱٺٺڄ‬. The letters (‫ )س‬and (ٛ) are dismissed.
120
The following word is a hexagram, with all its component letters
already unfolded except the third. We give it a trial and develop the
words: ( ‫اٹزپبٻ‬, ‫اٹؾپبٻ‬, ‫اٹنٽبٻ‬, ‫اٹْپبٻ‬, ‫پبٻ‬٪‫ اٹ‬and ‫)اٹٶپبٻ‬. From the context it is
quite easy to educe ( ‫پبٻ‬٪‫ٺّٺڄ اٹ‬١), and, as a corollary, we determine on
the pentagram ( ) and the other word ( ‫)ڇاٹٮچټ‬, besides the bigram
(ً‫)٭‬. We score the letters: (٫, ٟ and ٧).

The third word, a trigram with the middle letter being (‫ )ٷ‬and the
terminal (‫)ي‬, is followed by ( ‫)ٽبأٹچپب‬. Guided by the context, we hold
the trigram to be (‫ٺى‬٥), and so mark the letter (٣) in the cryptogram.
We now shift to the tetragram succeeding the word ( ‫)ڇآٹڄ‬, of which
the third letter only is yet to be disclosed. Experimentation
demonstrates ( ‫غڀ‬٦‫ ٽ‬and ‫لٿ‬٦‫)ٽ‬. We settle our choice on ( ‫لٿ‬٦‫)ٽ‬, and the
bigram that follows (prior to ‫ٺټ‬٥) shows itself to be ( ‫)ٵٸ‬. We thus label
the letter (‫ )ك‬in its positions.
Reverting to the first word of the cipher, of which the middle letter
is yet to break, we draw up: ( ‫اٹضپل‬, ‫اٹغپل‬, ‫ اٹؾپل‬and ‫)اٹٖپل‬. The phrase:
( ‫ٺى ٽب أٹچپب‬٥ ‫ )هلل‬that follows immediately leads us to settle on the word
(‫)اٹؾپل‬, and we point out the letter (‫)ػ‬.
Then we attend to the third tetragram situated in between ( ‫ٺى‬٥) and
(‫ٺّٺڄ‬١). On experimentation, the word (‫ )اٹني‬transpires.
Likewise we treat the pentagram next to the word ( ‫)ٽؾپل‬, of which
the fourth letter remaines covert as yet. Trying, we get the word ( ً‫)اٹڂج‬,
and designate the letter (‫)ة‬.
122
Still unsolved is the third letter, represented by the character ( ),
of the hexagram next to the word ( ْ‫)ٽِڀ‬. It is also the third letter of a
tetragram the initial letter of which is (‫)ا‬, the second (٫) and the
terminal (‫)ػ‬. In yet another word the same character symbolizes the
second letter of a pentagram starting with (‫)ڇ‬, ending with ( ‫ )څـ‬and
having (‫ )ػ‬and (‫ )ة‬as the third and fourth letters. Consequently the
letter (ٓ) is designated, and the first of the above-described words
thus turns out to be ( ‫)اٹٖڈاة‬, the second ( ‫)أ٭ٖؼ‬, and the last ( ‫)ڇٕؾجڄ‬.
The first word of the second line, a bigram, is thereby developed to be
( ‫)صټ‬, and the following word ( ‫ ;)ٕالح‬the letter (ً) of the word ( ‫)اٹَالٻ‬
shows up, too, so that the hemistich gets all clear and reads: ( ‫صټ ٕالح اهلل‬
‫)ڇاٹَالٻ‬.
It goes without saying that the more one gets and keeps one's hand
in, the faster cryptanalysis is accomplished.
It ensues that the fourth letter of the hexagram following ( ‫)أ٭ٖؼ ٽڀ‬
is the letter (ٗ) and that the word is (‫بك‬ٚ‫)ثبٹ‬. The context suggests that
the word after ( ٠‫ )٭ً اٹٺٮ‬is ( ٰٞ‫)ځ‬, and so we mark the letter (‫)ٯ‬. This
last-mentioned immediately gives rise to the appearance of its
counterpart (ٰ‫ )فٺ‬in the first hemistich of the same line - i.e. the third -.
The letter (‫ )ؿ‬is so designated as well, and therefore the word ( ‫)فٍو‬,
preceding ( ٰ‫)ٽڀ فٺ‬, manifests itself, and thereupon manifesting the
whole cleartext that flows:
124
- My Lord! By Thy grace I seek guidance;
By Thine inspiration I learn and be favoured.
Bestow Thy divine peace on him, oh, God:
On the Prophet whom a canopy of clouds
Shaded; who was endowed with eloquence;
The gem of humankind of all ages,
And all his folk of reason and intellect. -
That is quite enough for the sapient to be in the fair way to succeed.
God is the One to be sought for help, and unto whom souls are
committed. He is sufficient for us! Most Excellent is He in Whom we
trust. May His bounteous blessing and peace be upon our Prophet
Mu ammad and his magnanimous folk till the Day of Doom. Praise
belongs to God, the Lord of the World.
* * *
Handwritten by idq Mu af ibn li , on the day of Friday, 10th

Ramadan of the year 1149 of the Hegira(*) of Prophet Mu ammad,
blessing and peace on him and all his folk.
(*)
AD 1736.
49
‫بسن اهلل الشحوي الشحين‬
‫‪1‬‬
‫‪2‬‬
‫‪3‬‬
‫)‪(1‬‬
‫‪107 3‬‬ ‫‪723‬‬ ‫‪209‬‬
‫‪723‬‬
‫)‪(2‬‬
‫)‪(3‬‬
‫‪51‬‬
1
(1)
927 656
(2)
231 9
53
‫‪1‬‬ ‫‪1‬‬
‫‪2‬‬
‫‪3‬‬
‫‪5‬‬ ‫‪4‬‬
‫‪6‬‬
‫)‪(1‬‬
‫‪15 3‬‬ ‫‪231 9‬‬
‫‪523‬‬ ‫‪3‬‬ ‫‪60‬‬
‫‪27 24‬‬ ‫‪7‬‬ ‫پ چ ژ‬

‫)‪(2‬‬
‫‪8 7‬‬
‫)‪(3‬‬
‫)‪(4‬‬
‫‪15 3‬‬
‫‪523‬‬
‫‪65 64‬‬
‫)‪(5‬‬
‫‪523‬‬
‫)‪(6‬‬
‫‪239‬‬
‫‪55‬‬
1
1



(1)
57

59

2

1
(1)
232 9
(2)
232 9
(3)
61
1
(1)
91
(2)
(3)
63
1
(1)
649 646 1
180 5 1194 590 1144 538
111 110 8
(2)
65
3


1
2

4
3

(1)
(2)
(3)
16
67

5
1

3 2

4
(1)
(2)
67 66
53
325 324
(3)
232 9
(4)
(5)
69

1
6

(1)
71

(1)
73

(1)
(2)
232 9
75
1
7

(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
77
1
4 3
6 5
9 8 7
(1)
262 3
(2)
(3)
142 2
(4)
(5)
(6)
418 2
(7)
393 3
(8)
396 5
(9)
79

8

81

9

(1)
233 9
83
1
(1)
233 9
(2)
234 9
(3)
85
2 1
(1)
34 57 1
13 44 1 61
(2)
235 9
87
1
3 2
6 5
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
235 9
(6)
(7)
89
1
5 4 3 2
10 9 8 7 6
11
12
13
14
(1)
269 134
(2)
154 1 149
(3)
142
(4)
158
(5)
144
(6)
355 353
(7)
142
(8)
144
(9)
(10)
(11)
163
(12)
310 309
(13)
(14)
271
5
91
1
(1)
236 9
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
93
2 1
7 6 5
(1)
236 9
(2)
236 9
(3)
(4)
237 9
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
95
2 1
(1)
237 9
(2)
(3)
(4)
295
(5)
5 246
(6)
238 9
(7)
238 9
97
3 2 1
5 4
10 9
11
(1)
237 9
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
237 9
(7)
238 9
(8)
239 9
(9)
239 9
(10)
239 9
(11)
239 9
99
1
(1)
238 9
(2)
238 9
(3)
239 9
101
103
105
1
2 1
(1)
(2)
241 9
(3)
242 9
(4)
242 9
107
1
(1)
242 9
(2)
(3)
242 9
109
1
6 5
(1)
242 9
(2)
243 9
(3)
243 9
(4)
243 9
(5)
243 9
(6)
243 9
111
1
(1)
243 9
(2)
243 9
(3)
244 9
113
1
(1)
244 9
(2)
244 9
(3)
244 9
(4)
244 9
115
1
(1)
245 9
117
1
(1)
245 9
(2)
119
1
(1)
246 9
(2)
246 9
(3)
246 9
(4)
246 9
(5)
246 9
121
1
4 3
(1)
247 9
(2)
(3)
247 9
(4)
247 9
123
125
1
(1)
127

Arabic Origins of Cryptology Vol. 3

Caricato da

Informazioni sul documento

Copyright

Formati disponibili

Condividi questo documento

Condividi o incorpora il documento

Opzioni di condivisione

Hai trovato utile questo documento?

Questo contenuto è inappropriato?

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

Arabic Origins of Cryptology Vol. 3

Caricato da

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

Series on

Arabic Origins of Cryptology

ibn ad-Durayhim's Treatise

MOHAMMED MRAYATI, Ph. D.

YAHYA MEER ALAM, Ph. D. M. HASSAN at-TAYYAN, Ph. D.

The editors of this series greatly appreciate the encouragement they

List of Figures .…........................................................................... vii

Chapter 1: Analytical study of ibn ad-Durayhim’s treatise:

1.1 ibn ad-Durayhim's circle of letters ............................................. 13

2.1 A photocopy of the index of the assemblage incorporating

1.1 Calligraphs and alphabet size (number of letters) in different

as a in add (e.g. ' dam, qur' n).

This is the third book of the The Arabic Origins of Cryptology

Damascus, December 2003

Dr. Mohammed Mrayati

Analytical Study of ibn

ibn ad-Durayhim's treatise Mift al-Kun z f ' al-Marm z is a

1.3.1 Essentials for those practicing cryptanalysis

ibn ad-Durayhim accommodates his treatise with significant

Table 1.1: Calligraphs and alphabet size (number of letters) in different

1.3.2 Types of encipherment

ibn ad-Durayhim preeminently excelled in explaining methods of

Arrangement of ciphertext letters, by taking every fifth letter:

Al-Qummi cipher alphabet:

Table 1.3: Dual order of letters for some cipher alphabets

In the regulated simple substitution, on the other hand, substitution

ibn ad-Durayhim viewed the letters of the alphabet -when applying

Figure 1.1: ibn ad-Durayhim's circle of letters

We shall try in what follows to elucidate the four above-mentioned

‫‪Table 1.7: Table of encipherment as given by ibn ad-Durayhim, following the‬‬

1.3.2.4 The utilization of cipher devices

ibn ad-Durayhim comments on using such devices like that of the

1.3.2.5 The replacement of letters by numbers,

A numerical cryptogram expressed in one of the following forms:

Table 1.9: Table of the letters of the numerical alphabet with

To illustrate this method, let us now give a case in point by

This method is based on the principle of substituting letters to stand

1.3.2.6 The encipherment of letters by using

‫ٷ‬ ‫ٿ‬ ً ‫ػ‬ ‫ٷ‬ ‫ا‬ ‫ٿ‬ ‫ٻ‬

ibn ad-Durayhim further indicates another feasibility when merging

1.3.2.7 Replacing letters by generic names

a ‫أ‬ People ‫أځبٻ‬

1.3.2.8 Using invented symbols or signs to

1.3.3 Morphological introduction

B. The maximum repetition of a letter in one word

Table 1.11: Table of non-combinable letters as observed by ibn ad-Durayhim

It merits consideration that ibn ad-Durayhim, unlike al-Kind , ibn

1.3.5 Two practical examples of cryptanalysis

1.4 Originality of ibn ad-Durayhim

ibn ad-Durayhim's edited

Some people opt for changing places of the letters within a

so that the word (‫پو‬٥) is written in cipher: (ّٜ‫)ى‬.

[3. On the augmentation or reduction of the number of letters]

[4. On the utilization of cipher devices]

[5. On the replacement of letters using the decimally-weighted

[6. On the encipherment of letters by using words]

[7. On enciphering by relationship and diffusion method]

[8. A return to the type on the utilization of cipher devices]

 Another device is based on writing the message on a folded

[9. On using invented symbols or signs to represent letters]

by doubling it, -unlike later encipherers, who expressed gemination by

one letter only-.

Cryptanalysing the afore-stated and all kindred ciphers needs a

'genial' introduction that serves as a guide.