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Languages withDeficient Counting Systems | ||
Tags: Number System | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Philological Room |  | |
| GibberMeister Bilingual Pentaglot Groupie Scotland Joined 5597 days ago 61 posts - 67 votes  Speaks: Spanish, Catalan, Lowland Scots*, English*, Portuguese | Message 1 of 26 02 April 2009 at 3:00pm | IP Logged | ||
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FIRST QUESTION:
I find the French (of Celtic origin) counting system rather clumsy myself - i.e. four twenties and sixteen for 96. I was wondering if anyone knows of any other clumsy or deficient or unique counting systems in other languages. SECOND QUESTION: Also: Is there any truth in what I've read that there are languages that only possess the numerals 1 and 2. I''m sure it was Bill Bryson who wrote that Australian aboriginal languages counted the following way: 'Let's see, em, ONE, TWO, Oh Gosh, a WHOLE BUNCH!' 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| ChiaBrain Bilingual Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 5597 days ago 402 posts - 512 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish* Studies: Portuguese, Italian, French Studies: German | Message 2 of 26 03 April 2009 at 3:57am | IP Logged | ||
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Yes! I remember seeing some show on what I think was the National Geographic Channel
about a girl that came to the USA from some Amazon tribe. They mentioned that they only had numbers for 1 and 2 and everything else was "many" "four twenties and sixteen for 96." reminds me of "four score and seven years ago" i would understand "nova deca and six" or "octo deca and seven" faster Fortunately for science there is the metric system 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| stelingo Hexaglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 5621 days ago 722 posts - 1076 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian Studies: Russian, Czech, Polish, Greek, Mandarin | Message 3 of 26 03 April 2009 at 6:14pm | IP Logged | ||
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Danish has an even more cumbersome and complicated number system than French. Completely different from the other Scandinavian languages once you pass the 20s.
http://www.olestig.dk/dansk/numbers.html Edited by stelingo on 03 April 2009 at 6:15pm 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| Raincrowlee Tetraglot Senior Member United States Joined 6491 days ago 621 posts - 808 votes Speaks: English*, Mandarin, Korean, French Studies: Indonesian, Japanese | Message 4 of 26 03 April 2009 at 6:49pm | IP Logged | ||
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I am also reminded of the Russian counting system.
10 (desyet), 20 (dvadset) and 30 (treedset) have one ending, while 50-80 have another (pyatdesyat) which seem related to ten, but 40 is sorok and 90 is devyanosto, with "sto" meaning 100. Or Japanese, which has two ways of counting to ten, one native and the other Chinese. The oddest thing is that the Chinese way is more common. Edited by Raincrowlee on 03 April 2009 at 6:54pm 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| Romullo Newbie Brazil Joined 5836 days ago 20 posts - 30 votes Studies: English | Message 5 of 26 05 April 2009 at 12:00am | IP Logged | ||
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Look at the pirahã counting system, they simply can't count at all! It's the extreme exemple of inummeracy anywhere.
__________________________________________ Our counting system itself isn't perfect, as I read once in a Malba Tahan book the ten based system doesn't fit the fractions and multipes as well as a twelve or eleven based one would, the twenty system left traces in French (quatre-vingts) and in other languages, and the babylonian sixty based counting is still used today in our timing system division. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| modus.irrealis Bilingual Triglot Newbie Canada Joined 5667 days ago 29 posts - 37 votes Speaks: English*, Greek*, French Studies: German, Spanish, Russian, Danish, Turkish | Message 6 of 26 05 April 2009 at 6:07am | IP Logged | ||
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I've always found the Old English names for 70 - 120 odd:
70 hundseofontig 80 hundeahtatig 90 hundnigontig 100 hund(red) / hundteontig 110 hundendleofantig 120 hundtwelftig What's with "hund" meaning "a hundred" and also being prefixed to the the words for 70 - 120? 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| TDC Triglot Senior Member United States Joined 6710 days ago 261 posts - 291 votes Speaks: English*, Mandarin, French Studies: Esperanto, Ukrainian, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Persian | Message 7 of 26 05 April 2009 at 5:20pm | IP Logged | ||
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I remember ProfArguelles said something like the numbers 1-100 in Hindi are basically unrelated and you have learn each one.
Here's 1 - 50 grouped together (followed by the usual order) from http://www.ispeakhindi.com/2008/07/09/273-numbers-1-50-pg-17 / 1 –१ –एक EK 11 –११ ग्यारह GYAARAH 21 –२१ इक्कीस IKKEES 31 — ३१ इकत्तीस IKATEES 41 –४१ इकतालीस Ekatalees 10 –१० दस DUS 2 –२ दो DO 12 –१२ बारह BAARAH 22 –२२ बाईस BAAEES 32 — ३२ बत्तीस BATTEES 42–४२ बयालीस bayaalees 20 — २० बीस BEES 3 — ३ तीन TEEN 13 –१३ तेरह TERAH 23 –२३ तेईस TE-EES 33 –३३ तैंतीस TAINTEES 43 — ४३ तैंतालीस taiNntaalees/taiNtaalees 30 –३० तीस TEES 4 –४ चार CHAR 14 — १४ चौदह CHAUDAH 24 –२४ चौबीस CHAUBEES 34 – ३४ चौंतीस CHAUNTEES 44 — ४४ चौवालीस chaovaalees 40 — ४० चालीस chaalees 5 –५ पांच PAANCH 15 –१५ पन्द्रह PANDRAH 25 –२५ पच्चीस PACCHEES 35 –३५ पैंतीस PAINTEES 45 — ४५ पैंतालीस paiNntaalees/paiNtaalees 50 — ५० पचास pachaas 6 — ६ छः CHHE 16 –१६ सोलह SOLAH 26 –२६ छब्बीस CHHABBEES 36 — ३६ छत्तीस CHHATTEES 46 — ४६ छियालीस chhiyaalees 7 –७ सात SAAT 17 –१७ सत्रह SATRAH 27 –२७ सत्ताईस SATTAAEES 37 — ३७ सैंतीस SAINTEES 47 — ४७ सैंतालीस saiNntaalees/saiNtaalees 8 — ८ आठ AATH 18 –१८ अठारह ATHAARAH 28 –२८ अट्ठाईस ATTHAAEES 38 — ३८ अड़तीस ARDTEES 48 — ४८ अड़तालीस ADdataalees 9 –९ नौ NAU 19 –१९ उन्नीस UNNEES 29 –२९ उनतीस UNTEES 39 –३९ उनतालीस UNTAALEES 49 — ४९ उनचास Unachaas 10 –१० दस DUS 20 — २० बीस BEES 30 –३० तीस TEES 40 — ४० चालीस chaalees 50 — ५० पचास pachaas 1 –१ –एक EK 2 –२ दो DO 3 — ३ तीन TEEN 4 –४ चार CHAR 5 –५ पांच PAANCH 6 — ६ छः CHHE 7 –७ सात SAAT 8 — ८ आठ AATH 9 –९ नौ NAU 10 –१० दस DUS 11 –११ ग्यारह GYAARAH 12 –१२ बारह BAARAH 13 –१३ तेरह TERAH 14 — १४ चौदह CHAUDAH 15 –१५ पन्द्रह PANDRAH 16 –१६ सोलह SOLAH 17 –१७ सत्रह SATRAH 18 –१८ अठारह ATHAARAH 19 –१९ उन्नीस UNNEES 20 — २० बीस BEES 21 –२१ इक्कीस IKKEES 22 –२२ बाईस BAAEES 23 –२३ तेईस TE-EES 24 –२४ चौबीस CHAUBEES 25 –२५ पच्चीस PACCHEES 26 –२६ छब्बीस CHHABBEES 27 –२७ सत्ताईस SATTAAEES 28 –२८ अट्ठाईस ATTHAAEES 29 –२९ उनतीस UNTEES 30 –३० तीस TEES 31 — ३१ इकत्तीस IKATEES 32 — ३२ बत्तीस BATTEES 33 –३३ तैंतीस TAINTEES 34 – ३४ चौंतीस CHAUNTEES 35 –३५ पैंतीस PAINTEES 36 — ३६ छत्तीस CHHATTEES 37 — ३७ सैंतीस SAINTEES 38 — ३८ अड़तीस ARDTEES 39 –३९ उनतालीस UNTAALEES 40 — ४० चालीस chaalees 41 –४१ इकतालीस Ekatalees 42–४२ बयालीस bayaalees 43 — ४३ तैंतालीस taiNntaalees/taiNtaalees 44 — ४४ चौवालीस chaovaalees 45 — ४५ पैंतालीस paiNntaalees/paiNtaalees 46 — ४६ छियालीस chhiyaalees 47 — ४७ सैंतालीस saiNntaalees/saiNtaalees 48 — ४८ अड़तालीस ADdataalees 49 — ४९ उनचास Unachaas 50 — ५० पचास pachaas 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| Fat-tony Nonaglot Senior Member United Kingdom jiahubooks.co.uk Joined 5929 days ago 288 posts - 441 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Russian, Esperanto, Thai, Laotian, Urdu, Swedish, French Studies: Mandarin, Indonesian, Arabic (Written), Armenian, Pali, Burmese | Message 8 of 26 05 April 2009 at 7:18pm | IP Logged | ||
Pretty much true. Although you can often guess the number when you hear it (the 50's and the teens are the hardest-80's and 90's are quite easy in comparison), you can't just actively deduce the numbers in the way we are accustomed to in European languages. As far as I'm aware, all the Indic languages (certainly including Hindi/Urdu, Nepali and Punjabi) use the same system. I don't know about the Dravidian languages though. 1 person has voted this message useful |
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