The Maya were one of the largest and most advanced civilizations in Mesoamerica and throughout the world. Mayan culture endures in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, and in some parts of Guatemala. Undoubtedly one of the aspects that most drew attention to the Mayans is that they were quite advanced compared to other peoples, having a great knowledge of astrology and a very complete numbering system. In this article we will focus on Mayan numbers and you can learn the basics.
The Mayan number system draws a lot of attention because it was very complete and developed, despite having been developed independently. This civilization had a clear notion of zero, something the Europeans did not have until the Hindus showed it to them.
All Mayan numbers
Next we will list all the Mayan numbers from 1 to 1000. There are several images that you can download to your computer, mobile and even print to study them more in depth.
the 1 to 100
the 1 to 500
the 1 to 1000
We hope that this list is useful to you, you can download the PDF version by clicking here. If you have any questions about any number, you can leave a comment at the end of this article.
The history of Mayan numbers
Specialists consider that the Maya writing system are hieroglyphs, because it has a certain resemblance to the system used in Ancient Egypt. His writing was made up of a combination of ideograms and phonetic symbols, so it is quite difficult to decipher its content.
There is not much information about the Mayan writing because Spanish priests ordered to burn all Mayan books.
An interesting detail about the Mayan numbering system is that they invented it to measure time and not to do mathematical calculations. Thus, Mayan numbers have a direct connection to days, months and years, which is why the Mayan calendar is one of his best known works and is one of the most complete and accurate in the world.
Likewise, the numerical and mathematical system of the Maya was the first to develop a positional system. That is, the value of a digit or a number depended on its position. This I will explain in more detail below.
How are Mayan numbers written?
Mayan numbering is very easy to understand and understand. This is because there is only three symbols, although the forms may vary depending on the use that is given to them. Some numberings were for the codices, others for the monuments and others even had human representations.
The three basic symbols that we can find in Mayan numerals are: A point (1) a line (5) and a snail / seed / shell (0)
By combining these three symbols, the Mayan numbers from 0 to 20 could be obtained. From here on, it is important that you keep in mind that in the Mayan numeration quantities are grouped 20 by 20.
What about the Mayan numbers from 21 onwards? It is here where you can appreciate the positional system of the Mayans, in which the value of a number or figure varies depending on the position in which it is found, depending on the vertical position that the number occupies.
At the bottom are the numerals (those that go from 0 to 20), while in the upper level the numbers are worth the numeral figure multiplied by 20.
For example, in the number 25: in the lower part is 5 (the line that is equivalent to 5), and the upper part is equivalent to 20 (the point is equal to 1, but being in the upper part it is multiplied by 20) .
In case the figure has a third level, then the figure that is located in the 3rd level will be multiplied by 400 (20 x 20). When you get to use a fourth level, then the figure that is located in the 4th level will be multiplied by 8000 (20x20x20).
Characteristics of Mayan numbering
As I mentioned earlier, one of the reasons why the Mayan numbering system has attracted the attention of experts is that it had a high level of complexity to have been created individually and more than 2.000 years ago, since research has revealed that it was created hundreds of years BC On the other hand, it stands out for being the first culture in the entire American continent to have the concept of "nothing" or "zero".
Contrary to what we might think at first glance, the Mayans did not invent their number system to perform mathematical operations, but rather they used it to measure time. This is known thanks to the fact that archaeologists have found remains where the numbering is directed towards the measurement of time and its division into fractions. Although of course, they also used it to tell other things.
The vigesimal system of the Mayans is considered one of the most accurate in the world. Likewise, it is believed that Mayan calendar is more accurate than the Gregorian calendar and that it even had the same precision as modern measurement systems.
Although the main use of their numbering system was to measure time, thanks to it they also made great advances in geometric, astrology, and mathematics.
Regarding geometry, it is known that Mayas were very clear about the concept of the triangle, square, rectangle, circle and circumference, plus they could measure angles. They knew a large number of geometric figures and geometric volumes, having the ability to measure and use them at their convenience.
The Mayan numbering system we are talking about is the main and best known, but it is not the only numbering system used by the Mayans.
Mayan โheadโ numbering system
This other numbering system that they used is very characteristic because they used the heads of different deities to represent numbers, which is why it is known as the head numbering system. It is also a vigesimal system and its main number is 20.
In this numbering system the maximum number of divinities that could be represented was 14, so they were only enough to cover numbers from 0 to 13. What did you do to represent the 6 missing numbers up to 19? They placed the Mayan numbers from 10 to 4 on the lower part of the chin of the deity that represented 9.
Without a doubt it is a more complex and very incomplete system, which is why it was not used in many Mayan communities, most of them used the system of points, stripes and snails.
The Mayans were one of the most prodigious and amazing civilizations in the world, possibly the most advanced for their time in many ways. Its advances in mathematics, its numbering system, its calendar, its architecture, its knowledge of the universe, etc., in most of these respects surpassed any other contemporary civilization.
Next we are going to see a very interesting video about the Mayan numbers:
His disappearance and future
Experts believe that the disappearance of the Mayan civilization took place between the XNUMXth and XNUMXth century of our era, which is one of the greatest mysteries in the history of mankind. Until today the reason for the progressive abandonment of the great Mayan cities, which had become huge cities with great cultural and technological advances, is unknown. Historians continue to search for clues to his disappearance.
At present, some of the hypotheses that are had about the abandonment of the Mayan cities speak about natural disasters, attacks by more powerful empires or even a depletion of resources that forced them to emigrate to places with more fertile lands. However, none of these theories have been proven.
But What did this collapse mean for the Mayan numbering system, their calendar and all the advances they had made? All this knowledge was vastly superior to that of contemporary Europe and perhaps the world.
When the Spanish arrived in Yucatรกn in the XNUMXth century, the collapse of the Mayan civilization had occurred several centuries ago, so the contact of the Spaniards with the rest of the Mayan culture was not as important as the one it had with the Aztecs and other civilizations that still conserved large buildings.
The mathematical inheritance of the Mayans was collected by peoples who settled in the same geographical space that they, especially the Aztecs, who also stood out for their great use of mathematics, although the Aztec mathematical system had several differences with respect to the Mayan system.
With the end of the Aztec civilization and other great civilizations of Mesoamerica, the remains of the Mayan culture remained in history. The remains that remain for study and our knowledge are very scarce and extremely valuable.. Among the remains of Mayan knowledge, the Dresden Codex stands out, which is the oldest book in all of America, in which there is a whole section dedicated to the calendar and its numbering system.
Drill
Next, we have prepared a few exercises for you so that you can test your knowledge of Mayan numbers. You can review what we have been learning throughout the article without problem, the important thing is that you keep the basics and fundamentals ๐ Good luck!
Interesting
mmm yeahh
It was great for class thanks!
I need the numbers 43793 401 2348 and 716 in Mayan numerals for my activity in class
I really have a doubt. I would like to know how to write a date rather the year that is 2016