It’s Palindrome Week: Here’s 17 To Tickle Your Brain

Much like soap-shaving videos or stopping the gas tank right on the dollar, something that has always given me an odd sense of satisfaction is finding out a word is a palindrome, a word, phrase, sentence, or number that reads the same way forward or backward. So words like racecar, Hannah, or numbers like 11, 22, or 44.

Saturday 4/20/2024 was a special day, and not just for those stoners out there, but because it was the first of 10 days this month that are a palindrome, with 4/20 - 4/29 all being palindromes. Reading the date it's the same forward and backward.

Palindrome Fun Facts

Here are a couple of fun facts about palindromes from Walden.tv.

• Stanley Yelnats, the main character from the movie "Holes" is a palindrome. His last name, Yelnats, is just Stanley spelled backward.
• The longest palindrome in the dictionary is "tattarrattat", though it is worth noting that this is a bit of a stretch since it's the sound that gets made when you knock on a door. It's from Ulysses by James Joyce. It's more of a sound, but it's in the dictionary so we let it lie.
• According to the BBC, there is an unofficial name for someone who has a fear of palindromes: Aibohphobia. There is no way this is real because, if you hadn't noticed, the phobia name for palindromes is also a palindrome. Seems like a sick joke (probably because it is a joke).
• F, J, Q, V, X, and Z do not have any palindromes.

In the meantime, here are 17 palindromes to celebrate the special week.