Kalpana Kalpana (Editor)

Vietnamese numerals

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
Vietnamese numerals

Historically Vietnamese has two sets of numbers: one is etymologically native Vietnamese; the other uses Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary. In the modern language the native Vietnamese vocabulary is used for both everyday counting and mathematical purposes. The Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary is used only in fixed expressions or in Sino-Vietnamese words. This is somewhat analogous to the way in which Latin and Greek numerals are used in modern English (e.g., the bi- in bicycle). Sino-Vietnamese words are also used for units of ten thousand or above, where native vocabulary was lacking.

Contents

Concept

Among the languages of the Chinese cultural sphere, Japanese and Korean both use two numerical systems, one native and one Chinese-based. The Chinese-based vocabulary is the one in common use. In Vietnamese, on the other hand, the Chinese-based system is not in everyday use. Numbers from 1 to 1000 are expressed using native Vietnamese vocabulary, and only a few numbers (such as 1,000,000, triệu) are based on Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary.

In the modern Vietnamese writing system, numbers are written in the romanized script quốc ngữ or Arabic numerals. Prior to the 20th century Vietnam officially used Classical Chinese as a written language, using Chinese characters to write Sino-Vietnamese numbers. For non-official purposes Vietnamese also had a writing system known as Hán-Nôm. Under this system, Sino-Vietnamese numbers were written in Hán tự (Chinese characters) and native vocabulary was written in a system of modified Chinese characters known as Chữ Nôm.

Basic figures

Basic features of the Vietnamese numbering system include the following:

  • Unlike other sinoxenic numbering systems, Vietnamese separates place values in thousands rather than myriads. For example, "123123123" is recorded in Vietnamese as "một trăm hai mươi ba triệu một trăm hai mươi ba nghìn (ngàn) một trăm hai mươi ba, or '123 million, 123 thousand and 123', whilst in Chinese, Japanese and Korean, the same number is rendered "1億2312萬3123" (1 hundred-million, 2312 ten-thousand and 3123).
  • The Sino-Vietnamese numbers are not in frequent use in modern Vietnamese. Sino-Vietnamese numbers such as "vạn／萬" 'ten thousand', "ức／億" 'hundred-thousand' and "triệu／兆" 'million' are used for figures exceeding one thousand, but with the exception of "triệu" are becoming less commonly used. Number values for these words follow usage in Ancient China, with each numeral increasing tenfold in digit value, 億 being the number for 105, 兆 for 106, et cetera. (See Chinese numerals#Large numbers). As a result, the value of "triệu" differs from modern Chinese 兆.
  • Outside of fixed Sino-Vietnamese expressions, Sino-Vietnamese words are usually used in combination with native Vietnamese words. For instance, "mười triệu" combines native "mười" and Sino-Vietnamese "triệu".

    • The following table is an overview of the basic Vietnamese numeric figures, provided in both Native and Sino-Viet forms. For each number, the form that is more commonly used is highlighted. Where there are differences between the Hanoi and Saigon dialects of Vietnamese, readings between each are differentiated below within the notes.

    Other figures

  • When the number 1 appears after 20 in the unit digit, the pronunciation changes to "mốt".
  • When the number 4 appears after 20 in the unit digit, it is more common to use Sino-Viet "tư／四".
  • When the number 5 appears after 10 in the unit digit, the pronunciation changes to "lăm".
  • When "mười" appears after 20, the pronunciation changes to "mươi".

    • Ordinal numbers

    Vietnamese ordinal numbers are generally preceded by the prefix "thứ", which is a Sino-Viet word which corresponds to "次". For the ordinal numbers of one and four, the Sino-Viet readings "nhất／一" and "tư／四" are more commonly used; two is occasionally rendered using the Sino-Viet "nhì／二". In all other cases, the native Vietnamese number is used.

    References

    Vietnamese numerals Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA