Page:A simplified grammar of the Danish language.djvu/55

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numerals.
43
Danish. Norwegian.
30. tredive. tretti.
31. en og tredive, &c. en og  tretti.
40. fyrretyve. fyrti, or firti.
50. halvtredsindstyve. femti.
60. tredsindstyve. seksti.
70. halvfjærdsindstyve. sytti.
80. firsindstyve. otti.
90. halvfemsindstyve. nitti.

The higher numbers are the same among Danes and Norwegians; as,

100. ... ... ... hundrede.
1,000. ... ... ... tusinde.
100,000. ... ... hundrede tusinde.
1,000,000. ... ... million.

The cumbrous and verbose manner in which the numbers between 20 and 100 are characterized by Danes is of comparatively late introduction into Dano-Norwegian, and may possibly owe its origin to an old habit still prevailing in certain rural districts in Denmark of computing by scores, instead of tens, or dozens. The word sind is an old, otherwise obsolete term, meaning 'fold,' or 'turn,' whence tredsindstyve, 'sixty,' resolves itself into three times (or turns) twenty. Until recently the Norwegians, excepting in some parts of the north and west fjelds of the country, followed this method of reckoning, but of late years they have more and more generally reverted to the older, and simpler decimal system followed by the Swedes and Ice-