K, W, X, C starting call letters

[kfbkfb]

How did the USA end up with K and W as the required first letter in broadcast station call letters (A and U seem like they would be more likely)?

I can understand X for Mexico, but C for Canada makes no sense at all.


Kirk Bayne

 

[Deleted User]

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[Kelly A]

How did the USA end up with K and W as the required first letter in broadcast station call letters (A and U seem like they would be more likely)?

I can understand X for Mexico, but C for Canada makes no sense at all.


Kirk Bayne

Google is your friend: The Why (and Where) of U.S. Radio's K and W Call Signs

 

[Mediafrog+]

How did the USA end up with K and W as the required first letter in broadcast station call letters (A and U seem like they would be more likely)?

One thing I’ve wondered: In a hemisphere where most countries speak Spanish, note that K and W are not part of the “proper” Spanish alphabet. Could this have something to do with the predominately English speaking USA beng assigned those letters?

Of course part of the “A“ series is assigned to the U.S. for non-broadcast purposes. So is “N”, though there have been proposals (and attempts) to make it available for broadcasting.

I can understand X for Mexico, but C for Canada makes no sense at all.

Huh? Why would using the same letter as the beginning of the country’s name make no sense? Would you say the same thing about “J” being used in Japan, which actually is the case?

 

[Mr Tony]

How did the USA end up with K and W as the required first letter in broadcast station call letters (A and U seem like they would be more likely)?

I can understand X for Mexico, but C for Canada makes no sense at all.


Kirk Bayne

Don’t forget VO in Newfoundland and Labrador Canada
There are 4 call signs that pre-date when they became part of Canada in 1949

Also Canada doesn’t have all the C call signs. Canada has been assigned CF–CK. The CBC uses CB even though that is assigned to Brazil. Cuba also uses CM (if I recall)

 

[KeithE4]

Don’t forget VO in Newfoundland and Labrador Canada
There are 4 call signs that pre-date when they became part of Canada in 1949

Hams in Newfoundland and Labrador also use the VO prefix.

Also Canada doesn’t have all the C call signs. Canada has been assigned CF–CK. The CBC uses CB even though that is assigned to Brazil. Cuba also uses CM (if I recall)

CB is part of Cile's CA-CE block, used by Canada with their OK. Cuba uses CL, CM, and CO.

 

[gr8oldies]

One thing I’ve wondered: In a hemisphere where most countries speak Spanish, note that K and W are not part of the “proper” Spanish alphabet. Could this have something to do with the predominately English speaking USA beng assigned those letters?

Of course part of the “A“ series is assigned to the U.S. for non-broadcast purposes. So is “N”, though there have been proposals (and attempts) to make it available for broadcasting.

Huh? Why would using the same letter as the beginning of the country’s name make no sense? Would you say the same thing about “J” being used in Japan, which actually is the case?

Kirk is trolling this board

 

[Marcos_C]

I can understand X for Mexico, but C for Canada makes no sense at all.

Honestly, I thought it made sense. After all, C is the first letter of the name Canada.

 

[KeithE4]

Honestly, I thought it made sense. After all, C is the first letter of the name Canada.

And Chile. And Cuba. And Morocco...whoops, never mind.

 

[Negin]

Of course part of the “A“ series is assigned to the U.S. for non-broadcast purposes. So is “N”, though there have been proposals (and attempts) to make it available for broadcasting.

N is underused except for amateur radio call signs. Amateur radio also uses part of the As too.

 

[kfbkfb]

It seems too easy - "A"merica and "U"nited States (of America).

3 and 4 letter W call letters are used here in KC.

(and what's going on in Australia - in the movie "Two Hands", some of the characters listen to a radio station with a number starting the call "letter")


Kirk Bayne

 

[gr8oldies]

It seems too easy - "A"merica and "U"nited States (of America).

3 and 4 letter W call letters are used here in KC.

(and what's going on in Australia - in the movie "Two Hands", some of the characters listen to a radio station with a number starting the call "letter")


Kirk Bayne

"America" includes north and south America.

 

[K6JHU]

It seems too easy - "A"merica and "U"nited States (of America).

3 and 4 letter W call letters are used here in KC.

(and what's going on in Australia - in the movie "Two Hands", some of the characters listen to a radio station with a number starting the call "letter")


Kirk Bayne

Call signs starting with numbers (except for 1) have been assigned by treaty. The list of countries using number prefixes is on-line.

 

[kwthom]

Seems like Kirk needs to do some reading about the International Radiotelegraph Convention of 1912, when the allocation happened for the first time.

 

[Mediafrog+]

(and what's going on in Australia - in the movie "Two Hands", some of the characters listen to a radio station with a number starting the call "letter")

Call letters for broadcast stations in Australia are a number followed by two or three letters. The number indicates in which Australian state/territory the station is located.

2-New South Wales
3-Victoria
4-Queensland
5-South Australia
6-Western Australia
7-Tasmania
8-Northern Territory

Some newer stations in the Australian Capital Territory (their equivalent of D.C.) have a "1" as the number.

Back when Papua-New Guinea was an Australian territory, stations there began with a "9".

 

[davideduardo]

One thing I’ve wondered: In a hemisphere where most countries speak Spanish, note that K and W are not part of the “proper” Spanish alphabet. Could this have something to do with the predominately English speaking USA beng assigned those letters?

English is was the international language of things like emergency notification and the like in the early 20th Century and so that language's alphabet was used, including both the letters and the way of writing them That's why Cyrillic or Greek or Arabic alphabets or "symbolic" writing such as Chinese or Japanese are not used.

Huh? Why would using the same letter as the beginning of the country’s name make no sense? Would you say the same thing about “J” being used in Japan, which actually is the case?

Yet "Japan" in Japanese does not start with a "J". Most of the assignments are arbitrary, with some nations only getting part of a letter, such as Colombia, Ecuador, Panamá and the Dominican Republic sharing parts of the HA to HZ sequence.

 

[davideduardo]

Call letters for broadcast stations in Australia are a number followed by two or three letters. The number indicates in which Australian state/territory the station is located.

2-New South Wales
3-Victoria
4-Queensland
5-South Australia
6-Western Australia
7-Tasmania
8-Northern Territory

Some newer stations in the Australian Capital Territory (their equivalent of D.C.) have a "1" as the number.

Back when Papua-New Guinea was an Australian territory, stations there began with a "9".

And some countries added their own subsets. Ecuador uses 4 letters beginning with "HC" followed by a number where the number indicates the province or group of provinces. HCRM1 would be an Ecuadorian station in the Province of Pichincha, while HCRC2 would be one in Guayas and so on. In that nation, for many years, stations were not allowed to use call letters for identification and required an approved name be attached to the license.

 

[Mediafrog+]

English is was the international language of things like emergency notification and the like in the early 20th Century and so that language's alphabet was used, including both the letters and the way of writing them That's why Cyrillic or Greek or Arabic alphabets or "symbolic" writing such as Chinese or Japanese are not used.

Ture, but I was just thinking that Spanish speaking countries might have wanted to avoid using K and W as they were not "part of the proper Spanish alphabet."

Yet "Japan" in Japanese does not start with a "J".

Also true, but I guess N was already taken.

Note that Germany has the "D" series (Deutschland).

 

[KeithE4]

N is underused except for amateur radio call signs. Amateur radio also uses part of the As too.

N was originally assigned exclusively to the Navy and Marines, while AA-AL were split between the Army and Air Force. They were released for Amateur Radio use in 1978.

 

[Mediafrog+]

And some countries added their own subsets. Ecuador uses 4 letters beginning with "HC" followed by a number where the number indicates the province or group of provinces. HCRM1 would be an Ecuadorian station in the Province of Pichincha, while HCRC2 would be one in Guayas and so on. In that nation, for many years, stations were not allowed to use call letters for identification and required an approved name be attached to the license.

Let's not forget Haiti, with calls beginning with "4". Religious station 4VEH is probably the best known example, due to its many years on shortwave.

Edit to add: IIRC the individual transmitters of 4VEH actually had their own calls with a different final letter, but 4VEH was the unified branding for the operation. Memory a little fuzzy on that; their SW operation has been gone for several decades.