Numeral System: Indian And International

Maths is an integral part of our life. Though you sometimes, do not notice, but we perform a lot of mathematical operations every day. When you count the stars or when you calculate the time you need to finish a chapter, or the time you can sneak in your schedule for your play date, you are performing simple mathematical operations. But, have you ever noticed that Americans say 100 thousand for the same quantity, for which we Indians use 1 lakh. If this difference has ever caught your attention and left you wondering then this blog is for you. Or even if you have got to know about it just now, keep on reading to learn something new today. These two ways of naming the numbers, we just mentioned are called International and Indian numeral systems respectively,9]. Now, the first question that pops in your mind is what numerals are. A numeral is a symbolic representation of a number (e.g., 1, 5, 20, 300). Numeral system on the other hand, is the way we group numerals into place values. It is a way of expressing numbers using numerals i.e. number symbols. In a numeral system the position of each digit gives it a place value. For example, in number 333 all 3s have the same face value i.e 3, but their place value due to their position is different. Starting from right their place value is 3, 30 and 300 respectively.  This grouping and naming of numbers and digits is attributed to numeral system. Different countries use slightly different grouping and naming systems. Here, we will concentrate on the Indian numeral system and International numeral system and understand them in a clear and simple way.

Indian Numeral System

It is mainly used in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. In Indian numeral system, numbers are grouped differently compared to the international system. First cooma is places after the hundred (100) i.e one thousand will be written as 1,000. Afterwards, commas are placed every two digits i.e. one lakh will be written as 1,00,000 and ten lakh will be written as 10,00,000. Large numbers are expressed in lakhs and crores.

Place Values in Indian Numeral System are provided in the form of a table here:

So, now in Indian numeral system we will write:

45,678 as forty-five thousand six hundred seventy-eight

2,45,43,564 as two crore forty-five lakh forty-three thousand five hundred sixty-four

1,23,45,678 as one crore twenty-three lakh forty-five thousand six hundred seventy-eight

International Numeral System

International Number System or International Numeral System is used in most other countries such as USA, UK, Europe, etc. In this system, commas are placed after every three digits from the right. Here, large numbers are expressed in millions and billions.

Place Values in Internationals Numeral System are provided in the form of a table here:

So, now in International numeral system we will write:

45,678 as forty-five thousand six hundred seventy-eight

24,543,564 as twenty-four million three hundred forty-five thousand five hundred sixty-four

12,345,678 as twelve million three hundred forty-five thousand six hundred seventy-eight

This gives you a glimpse of the different naming in these two numeral systems. So, if we compare the Indian Numeral System and the International Numeral system, the key difference can be summarised as:

The Indian System uses Lakhs and Crores,  and commas are put first after three digits then after every second digit i.e.12,34,56,789. On the other hand, International System uses Millions and Billions,  and the commas are put after every third digit i.e.123,456,789.

Let’s have a look at the comparison table that shows the different names used for different place values in the two numeral systems, namely Indian Numeral System and International Numeral System.

So, some of you might wonder why so fuss about the numeral system, why to bother about them at all? Great question. Actually, the numeral system is extremely important in our daily lives, mathematics, science, and even culture. How? This question gets answered in the following points:

1. Numeral systems (like Indian & International) are the foundation of Mathematics. They provide a standard way of writing numbers. If we do not follow a numeral system we cannot do even simple mathematical operations. Simple addition, subtraction, multiplication or division problems could not be performed effectively in absence of a standard numeral system in place. With the help of Place value (ones, tens, hundreds…) we can easily handle large and small numbers.

2. Numeral systems help in convenient communication of numbers. The numerals can be credited to be the universal language of mathematics understood across the world. Whether it’s writing ₹1,000 (Indian) or $1,000 (International), numerals make values clear. The numeral systems help in business, banking, trade, and commerce all across the world.

3. The numeral systems are also a symbol of cultural and regional identity. Such as, the Indian system (which uses lakhs, crores) reflects traditional usage in South Asia. On the other hand, the International system ( which uses millions, billions) reflects global standards. Both the numeral systems, Indian numeral system as well as International numeral system  show how cultures developed their own way of counting and grouping numbers.

4. Organizing Large Quantities is also done with the help of numeral systems. These systems help us read, write, and compare very large numbers. For example, the numeral systems help us to count, record and compare the large size populations, national budgets, planetary sizes and galactic distances, scientific data, etc.

5. Real-Life Applications of the numeral systems can be easily seen in economy, education, geography, science and technology. Counting money, salary calculation, budgeting, pricing are the examples of usage of numeral systems in economy. Learning and teaching maths, science, statistics are some of the uses of numeral systems in education. Calculating distances between places, population counts etc in geography are done with the help of numeral systems only. In science, measurement of atoms, molecules, heights, distances, mass, etc is done with the help of numeral systems only. In the field of technology mobile data, storage etc are measured with the help of numeral systems. 

6. Scientific & Technological Use include working of computers on the binary numeral system that has only two values 0 and 1. Decimal, octal and hexadecimal numeral systems are also used in computer programming, digital communication, data storage etc.

To summarise, the numeral systems are the backbone of mathematics and modern life. Applications like counting, calculating, communicating, and connecting with the world are made possible with the help of numeral systems. So, this topic was interesting, no? Many such interesting and informative topics related to science can be learned in the Alpha Maths program by Bambinos. Qualified educators help kids achieve success and recognition in the field of mathematics through one on one as well as group classes. You can opt type of classes, the educator and the slots easily through the parent portal. Connect today through the website.

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