Cryptologic Bytes

28 October 1977: Lambros Callimahos, noted NSA cryptanalyst and teacher, died. Mr. Callimahos was inducted into the NSA Cryptologic Hall of Honor in 2003. Read about his life and accomplishments via the link at the end of this page.

Excerpted from the NSA Cryptologic Hall of Honor record:

Through the 1950s, Mr. Callimahos collaborated with William Friedman on a variety of projects and developed his own famous class CA-400. This was an expansion of Friedman's original intensive-study senior cryptanalytic course. He taught 32 sessions of CA-400, for a total of 270 students. Graduates of CA-400, the elite among cryptanalysts, became members of the Dundee Society, a society made up by Mr. Callimahos named after the empty Dundee marmalade jar on his desk because he couldn't disclose the real purpose of the group, and played a crucial role in shaping cryptologic development at NSA.

A prolific writer of cryptologic literature, Mr. Callimahos was the author of over 40 books, monographs, and articles. He helped establish NSA's Technical Journal in 1955 and served as technical advisor to the publication for the rest of his career. He wrote articles on codes and ciphers for numerous reference works, including Encyclopedia Britannica.

By the end of his career, Mr. Callimahos was respected by his colleagues and students as a true Renaissance man: teacher, writer, linguist, cryptologist, and flutist. He was awarded the NSA Exceptional Civilian Service Award on 24 August 1976.