ELI5 NATO Phonetic Alphabet - why Alpha, Bravo, Charlie?

How did the NATO phonetic alphabet come about? Why were specific words chosen for each letter? Has it changed over time? Why is the number 9 spoken as “niner”? ... we explain like I'm five Thank you to the r/explainlikeimfive community and in particular the following users whose questions and comments formed the basis of this discussion: i_hate_platpi_ama, mykro76, hugepilchard, instantpowdy and randomusefulbits To the ELI5 community that has supported us so far, thanks for all your feedback and comments. Send us an e-mail: [email protected]