Global InformationLong and short scales information
The long and short scales are two of several naming systems for integer powers of ten which use some of the same terms for different magnitudes.[1][2]
Some languages, particularly in East Asia and South Asia, have large number naming systems that are different from both the long and short scales, such as the Indian numbering system and the Chinese, Japanese, or Korean numerals.[1][2]
Much of the remainder of the world adopted either the short scale or the long scale for everyday counting powers of ten. Countries with the usage of the long scale include most countries in continental Europe and most that are French-speaking, German-speaking and Spanish-speaking.[3] Usage of the short scale is found in Brazil and in most English-speaking and Arabic-speaking countries.
For whole numbers smaller than 1,000,000,000 (109), such as one thousand or one million, the two scales are identical. For larger numbers, starting with 109, the two systems differ. For identical names, the long scale proceeds by powers of one million, whereas the short scale proceeds by powers of one thousand. For example, on the short scale, "one billion" means one thousand million (1,000,000,000), whereas in the long scale, it means one million million (1,000,000,000,000). The long scale system employs additional terms for interleaved values, typically replacing the word ending -ion by -iard.
To avoid confusion resulting from the coexistence of the two terms, the International System of Units (SI) recommends using the metric prefix to indicate orders of magnitude, associated with physical quantities.
- ^ a b Guitel, Geneviève (1975). Histoire comparée des numérations écrites (in French). Paris: Flammarion. pp. 51–52. ISBN 978-2-08-211104-1.
- ^ a b Guitel, Geneviève (1975). ""Les grands nombres en numération parlée (État actuel de la question)", i.e. "The large numbers in oral numeration (Present state of the question)"". Histoire comparée des numérations écrites (in French). Paris: Flammarion. pp. 566–574. ISBN 978-2-08-211104-1.
- ^ "Authoritative Real Academia Española (RAE) dictionary: billón". Archived from the original on 4 November 2015. Retrieved 12 March 2015.