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[-] Batman@lemmy.world 4 points 15 hours ago

Back in Frances time these were large numbers. One million five hundred thousand one hundred eight, like ???? That's how people in the future will look at you when you say that number in English. Stop counting people, our brains are not meant for this

[-] Treczoks@lemmy.world 14 points 1 day ago

Just ask the Danish how to "calculate" their word for 90, and you will consider the French approach simplicistic.

[-] Scrollone@feddit.it 3 points 21 hours ago

In a way, Danish is more clear than French, because all numbers between 50 and 90 are based on the vigesimal (base-20) system.

[-] Treczoks@lemmy.world 2 points 19 hours ago

Oh yea, "half to five" aka 4.5 times 20. Very intuitive...

[-] daddycool@lemmy.world 3 points 22 hours ago* (last edited 22 hours ago)

90 = Half fives.

50 = Half sixty.

70 = Half (I don't even know how to translate this)

[-] kungen@feddit.nu 5 points 21 hours ago

Huh? 50 is halvtreds (20 * 2.5)

70 is actually halvfjerdensindstyve, literally "half to the four(th20) times 20". So the base number (20) * 3.5...

The problem is, Danish people can't understand each other even with the simplest of words, so they just say halvfjerds.

[-] Scrollone@feddit.it 2 points 21 hours ago

70 = halfway to the fourth twenty

In other words, three twenties are 60, four twenties are 80, halfway between them is 70.

Same for the other ones: 50 is halfway to the third twenty, 90 is half more than the fourth twenty.

[-] rumba@lemmy.zip 6 points 23 hours ago

Me in high school french:

70: soixante-dix ohhh trippy, 60 10, why not start at 50, that's strange so 80 will be soixante-vingt (60 20) right? ... right?

80: quatre-vingt 4 20's?

but why 60 20 and then 4 20?

[-] SaharaMaleikuhm@feddit.org 2 points 12 hours ago

Seems like my lifelong hatred for the French was justified after all!

[-] rumba@lemmy.zip 1 points 6 hours ago

LOL, They weren't so bad. I even went to Paris. TBH, I think the American tourists over there was much worse :) Prisians give off an NYC leave me the fuck alone vibe.

[-] IndustryStandard@lemmy.world 5 points 22 hours ago

Quatre-vingt blaze iet

[-] Kennystillalive@feddit.org 17 points 1 day ago

Septante, huitante et nonante

[-] farfalla@jlai.lu 1 points 14 hours ago* (last edited 14 hours ago)

that

We should conspire to put this un use in all francophony

[-] Scrollone@feddit.it 2 points 21 hours ago
[-] Jacob_Mandarin@lemmy.world 2 points 10 hours ago

And belgium

[-] Kennystillalive@feddit.org 1 points 12 hours ago

*Swiss-french.

We optimized French like we optimized German.

[-] Enkrod@feddit.org 1 points 11 hours ago

Bwahahahahaha

[-] Leviathan@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

The correct way.

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[-] Limonene@lemmy.world 22 points 1 day ago

Quatre vingt dix nuts lol gottem

[-] Rekonok@sh.itjust.works 5 points 1 day ago

Basé et nombre pilé

[-] weps@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago

Belgians are better at French than the French

[-] Mordred_vat@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

Swiss people do. Belgians still use four-twenty, alongside septante and nonante, which is a whole other level of absurd

[-] Hansae@lemmy.dbzer0.com 9 points 1 day ago

Lol wait until you find out about the Danish counting system, truly unhinged.

[-] BlaestEgnen@feddit.dk 8 points 1 day ago

What's wrong about it?

Halvfjerds, half fourth. Clearly that's seventy.

But it's short for halvfjerdsindstyvende. Half fourth's in twenties. Yep that's seventy my friend

[-] AEsheron@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago

I assume the name refers to the fact that you are halfway to the fourth twenty from the third?

[-] BlaestEgnen@feddit.dk 1 points 12 hours ago

Yep, that's it

[-] Hansae@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 day ago

When I learnt Danish the number system legit took me far longer than anything else xd, maths classes were certainly interesting.

[-] Scrollone@feddit.it 1 points 21 hours ago

You learnt the reason why they call it that way, but Danes don't think that way. They just know that 60 is called tres, that's it.

"French" does indeed have them, it's just that the French don't use them. Luckily the Belgians do.

[-] Slayan@lemmy.ca 20 points 1 day ago

Tough, though, throw, trough, thorough, through, thought.

[-] naticus@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

I'm charging you with assault.

[-] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

It comes from way before French. Some tribe, Celts, or whatever, call them Gauls, although it doesn't really mean anything other that "people who live in that area according to the Romans", counted in twenties. And that's one of the things they've left us. For better or for worse.

[-] lawks@aussie.zone 1 points 14 hours ago

That and Asterix.

[-] nightwatch_admin@lemmy.world 101 points 2 days ago

I take no complaints on that subject from people who measure in inches, feet and ounces.

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[-] Noodle07@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

And look how far we got without it, it's all in your head buddy

[-] SaharaMaleikuhm@feddit.org 1 points 12 hours ago

Country burning to a crisp because of the climate armageddon? Far indeed.

[-] Noodle07@lemmy.world 1 points 10 hours ago

Same as everywhere else 🤷

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this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2026
317 points (95.9% liked)

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