---
title: "2 Cipher Quotes By David Kahn"
description: "2 Cipher quotes by David Kahn. Plus more from David Kahn and more Cipher sayings from other authors."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/david-kahn-13896_dreams_hildegard-von-bingen-an-11th-century-nun_149940.jpg"
---

> [“Hildegard von Bingen, an 11th-century nun who saw apocalyptic visions and was later canonized, had a cipher alphabet which she claimed came to her in a flash of inspiration.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/hildegard-von-bingen-an-11th-century-nun-who-saw-apocalyptic-visions/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/david-kahn-13896_dreams_hildegard-von-bingen-an-11th-century-nun_149940.jpg)

> [“The more a cipher deviates from the simple form in which one ciphertext letter invariably replaces the same plaintext letter, the harder it is to break.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-more-a-cipher-deviates-from-the-simple-form-in-which-one/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/feb/david-kahn-13896_quote_the-more-a-cipher-deviates-from-the-simp_1719635.jpg)

## More by David Kahn

> [“Hildegard von Bingen, an 11th-century nun who saw apocalyptic visions and was later canonized, had a cipher alphabet which she claimed came to her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/hildegard-von-bingen-an-11th-century-nun-who-saw-apocalyptic-visions/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“the most famous of all those who had an acquaintance with cryptology in the Middle Ages was an English customs official, amateur astronomer, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an-acquaintance-with-cryptology/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“The task of the cryptanalysts consisted primarily of reconstructing the wiring and switches of the coding wheels—a task made more burdensome by the daily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-task-of-the-cryptanalysts-consisted-primarily-of-reconstructing/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“Analyzing the frequency and contacts of letters is the most universal, most basic of cryptanalytic procedures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/analyzing-the-frequency-and-contacts-of-letters-is-the-most-universal/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“General Joseph O. Mauborgne, who became Chief Signal Officer in October, 1937. Mauborgne had long been interested in cryptology. In 1914, as a young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/general-joseph-o-mauborgne-who-became-chief-signal-officer-in-october/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“The only writer of the Middle Ages to describe cryptography instead of just using it was Roger Bacon, the English monk of startlingly modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-only-writer-of-the-middle-ages-to-describe-cryptography-instead/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“Cryptology served magical purposes frequently throughout the Middle Ages, and even in the Renaissance was still disguising important parts of alchemical formulas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/cryptology-served-magical-purposes-frequently-throughout-the-middle/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“Ibn ad-Duraihim, according to Qalqashandi, gave seven systems of cipher:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/ibn-ad-duraihim-according-to-qalqashandi-gave-seven-systems-of-cipher/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“The technique was at least moderately well known, for Ibn Khaldūn wrote in The Muqaddimah: “Occasionally, skillful secretaries, though not the first to invent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-technique-was-at-least-moderately-well-known-for-ibn-khald-n/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“Cryptology was born among the Arabs. They were the first to discover and write down the methods of cryptanalysis. The people that exploded out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/cryptology-was-born-among-the-arabs-they-were-the-first-to-discover/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“Another steganographic system was still in use in the 20th century: Aeneas suggested pricking holes in a book or other document above or below…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/another-steganographic-system-was-still-in-use-in-the-20th-century/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“Also of great importance in the discovery of linguistic phenomena that led to cryptanalysis was the development of lexicography.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/also-of-great-importance-in-the-discovery-of-linguistic-phenomena/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“The world owes its first instructional text on communications security to the Greeks. It appeared as an entire chapter in one of the earliest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-world-owes-its-first-instructional-text-on-communications/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“His method resembles George Bernard Shaw’s way of using the /f/ sound of GH in “tough,” the /i/ sound of o in “women,” and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/his-method-resembles-george-bernard-shaw-s-way-of-using-the-f-sound/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

> [“Much of the history of cryptology of this time is a patchwork, a crazy quilt of unrelated items, sprouting, flourishing, withering. Only toward the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/much-of-the-history-of-cryptology-of-this-time-is-a-patchwork-a-crazy/)

[David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/)

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