Marhaba! To continue our series of useful Arabic basics, we will present the Arabic number system. Don’t forget to check our previous articles regarding colors in Arabic, basic Arabic sentences, and basic Arabic words. We at Kaleela believe that we should first cover the basics, numbers being one of them. Let’s say you’re in one of the Arab cities, in a souq at a café with a friend and you want to order 2 cups of Turkish coffee. We already showed you how to say Please in Arabic (Law samaht) suggestion.
The numeral system was first invented by Indian mathematicians and then it was adopted in Arabic mathematics by the 9th century. Currently, it is the most widespread numeral system between the nations as they later on borrowed it from Arabs. However, Arab nations sometimes write the numbers (Al-arqaam – الأرقام) differently, using what is called the Eastern Arabic numerals. We will offer the graphic representation and also present numbers in Arabic words, so it may help with your alphabet practicing. First, please see the table below for the numeral symbols and their correspondent:
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Modern script |
| ٠ | ١ | ٢ | ٣ | ٤ | ٥ | ٦ | ٧ | ٨ | ٩ | Arabic script |
Let’s take a look at how to write in Arabic
| English | Transliteration | Arabic |
|---|---|---|
| 0 in Arabic | sifr | صفر |
| 1 in Arabic | wahid | واحد |
| 2 in Arabic | ‘ithnaan | إثنان |
| 3 in Arabic | thlathah | ثلاثة |
| 4 in Arabic | ‘arba’ah | أربعة |
| 5 in Arabic | khamsah | خمسة |
| 6 in Arabic | sittah | ستة |
| 7 in Arabic | sab’ah | سبعة |
| 8 in Arabic | thmaanyah | ثمانية |
| 9 in Arabic | tis’ah | تسعة |
| 10 in Arabic | ‘ashrah | عشرة |
| 11 in Arabic | ‘ehdaa ‘ashar | إحدى عشر |
| 12 in Arabic | ‘ethna ‘ashar | إثنى عشر |
| 13 in Arabic | thalathat ‘ashar | ثلاثة عشر |
| 14 in Arabic | ‘arb’at ‘ashar | أربعة عشر |
| 15 in Arabic | khmsat ashar | خمسة عشر |
| 16 in Arabic | settat ‘ashar | ستة عشر |
| 17 in Arabic | sab’at ‘ashar | سبعة عشر |
| 18 in Arabic | thmanyeat ‘ashar | ثمانية عشر |
| 19 in Arabic | tis’at ‘ashar | تسعة عشر |
| 20 in Arabic | ‘ushroon | عشرون |
| 21 in Arabic | waḫid wa-’ishroon | واحد و عشرون |
| 22 in Arabic | ‘ithnane wa-’ishroon | إثنان وعشرون |
| 23 in Arabic | talaata wa-’ishroon | ثلاثة و عشرون |
| 24 in Arabic | ‘arba’ah wa-’ishroon | أربعة و عشرون |
| 25 in Arabic | khamsah wa-’ishroon | خمسة و عشرون |
| 26 in Arabic | sittah wa-’ishroon | ستة و عشرون |
| 27 in Arabic | sab’ah wa-’ishroon | سبعة وعشرون |
| 28 in Arabic | thmaanyah wa-’ishroon | ثمانية و عشرون |
| 29 in Arabic | tis’ah wa-’ishroon | تسعة و عشرون |
For the upcoming cardinal numbers, we will not write the full list, as it follows the same pattern.
For example 37 is sab’a wa- thalatun (سبعة وثلاثون) , 53 is thalata wa-khamsun (ثلاثة وخمسون) and so on.
| English | Transliteration | Arabic |
|---|---|---|
| 30 in Arabic | thalaathoon | ثلاثون |
| 40 in Arabic | ‘arba’oon | أربعون |
| 50 in Arabic | khamsoon | خمسون |
| 60 in Arabic | sittoon | ستون |
| 70 in Arabic | sab’oon | سبعون |
| 80 in Arabic | thamaanoon | ثمانون |
| 90 in Arabic | tis’oon | تسعون |
| 100 in Arabic | maa’ah | مائة |
| 1000 in Arabic | ‘alf | ألف |
| 2000 in Arabic | ‘alfaan | ألفان |
| 100.000 in Arabic | ma’ata ‘alf | مائة ألف |
| 1.000.000 in Arabic | millyoon | مليون |
Hope you enjoyed this! Also, we would strongly advise that you try and write the Arabic numbers, aside from the alphabet. Kaleela will continue offering you comprehensive content to aid you in learning Arabic.
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