nasin nanpa ali ike

From sona pona, the Toki Pona wiki
Caution: The subject of this article is an experimental or hypothetical style that is not understood by most speakers, or is used only in specific small communities. Learners should avoid using it.

there are no good number systems (except nasin nanpa pona)

tags:

  • [base name] (using jan Misali's method)
  • [humorous]
  • [pu words]
  • [self-documenting] (can be understood without having to learn it)

sorted by base first, then time of creation/publication (date is utc but it's no big deal)

all message links are to ma pona pi toki pona unless specified otherwise

additive ("hundred hundred hundred hundred ten ten")[edit | edit source]

[pu words] pu simple, ken la tan gumulgal[edit | edit source]

1 - wan
2 - tu

7 - tu tu tu wan

[pu words] pu advanced[edit | edit source]

1 - wan
2 - tu
5 - luka
20 - mute
100 - ale/ali

69 - mute mute mute luka tu tu

notes:

  • can be ambiguous: len luka tu - two gloves or seven clothes?
    • pi can sometimes solve the issue but Not Always; len luka pi tu is not allowed (pu simple could just do len luka pi mute tu but here mute is a number), and len pi luka tu can be read as clothe of two hands which is... p much the same admittedly
  • there's an idea of using ali only for 100 and ale for "all"

[pu words] pu compromise[edit | edit source]

1 - wan
2 - tu
5 - luka
42 - luka luka luka luka luka luka luka luka tu

notes:

  • lipamanka made me (jan Kita) realize that the nanpa-ification of luka is nowhere near as bad as mute/ale (since the former isn't already used for like, amounts,)

[pu words] [self-documenting] reduced-ambiguity pu, tan jan Kuka[edit | edit source]

Same as pu, except "luka," "mute" and "ale" are only used to refer to numbers when they are elements of an addition, never on their own.

0: ala
1: wan
2: tu
3: tu wan
4: tu tu
5: tu tu wan
6: luka wan
7: luka tu
8: luka tu wan
9: luka tu tu
10: luka luka
...
19: luka luka luka tu tu
20: luka luka luka luka
21: mute wan
22: mute tu
...
99: mute mute mute mute luka luka tu tu wan
100: mute mute mute mute mute
101: ale wan
102: ale tu
...
2022: ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale mute tu
...
infinity: ale pi pini ala

[pu words] pu advanced alternative, tan jan Non Te Pun[edit | edit source]

1 - wan
2 - tu
5 - luka
20 - sijelo
42 - sijelo sijelo tu
69 - sijelo sijelo sijelo luka tu tu

notes:

  • nasin Pu Sin li sona tan jan mute. taso, nanpa mute en nanpa ale li nasa. nanpa luka li meso. nanpa sijelo li pilin sama e nanpa luka la, sijelo li jo e palisa 20.
  • Pu Advanced is the defacto standard; however, using "mute" and "ale" as numbers can be quite confusing. "luka" as a number word is much less likely to be ambiguous and is pretty widely accepted as meaning 5, even outside of pu advanced. Using "sijelo" for 20 extends the metaphor; your body has 2 hands and 2 feet, for a total of 20 digits (fingers + toes). Sijelo is also unlikely to be as confusing as "mute" and "ale" in context.

[pu words] seximal-based, tan jan Misali[edit | edit source]

website

1 - wan
2 - tu

5 - tu tu wan

610 - 106 - luka
3610 - 1006 - mute
21610 - 10006 - ale

6910 - 1536 - mute luka luka luka luka luka tu wan

[binary] true binary counting system, tan jan Pensa[edit | edit source]

License for this section: CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication

Made up as a way to more intuitively understand how binary counting would work, based how decimal counting works in most languages. A Toki Pona style additive counting system turned out to be perfect for that.

1 - wan
2 - tu
4 - po
8 - ka
16 - sisi
32 - sasu
64 - sepu
128 - ome

21 - sisi po wan
75 - sepu ka tu wan
140 - ome ka po

etymologies:

  • ka - a priori, made to sound similar to tu and po. (All plosives and back(ish) vowels.)
  • sisi ← sisin ← sixteen
  • sasu ← sasitu ← thirty-two
  • sepu ← sipo ← sisipo ← sixty-four (vowels changed to avoid similarities to sisi and po)
  • ome ← back derivation from omekapo, 'cause it's musi

See also the expanded hexadecimal version.

[pu words] [humorous] nanpa weka, tan kala pona Tonyu[edit | edit source]

2020-07-06, ... nanpaweka, message, screenshot; lili tan kule epiku Atawan tan jan sasalin pi sona lili

-∞ - moli
-100 - ala
-20 - lili
-5 - noka
-2 - kin
-1 - kiwen
-1/2 - kon
0 - o/seme
1/2 - ko
1 - wan
2 - tu
5 - luka
20 - mute
100 - ale/ali
∞ - lon

-69 - lili lili lili noka kin kin
-95 - ala luka / luka ala (nasin ale li ken[;] mi sona ala ~kala pona Tonyu lon dm)

[humorous] letter-based backwards-compatible, tan akesi kon Nalasuni[edit | edit source]

(2021-01-21, message, screenshot)

-197 - j
-112 - o
-99 - w
-97 - s
-83 - m
-2 - l
-1 - u
1 - a
3 - t
3 - i
7 - k
99 - n
101 - e
116 - p

0 - ala
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - tuli
4 - po
5 - luka
20 - mute
100 - ale

-5 - noka
3 - san
4 - se
4 - neja
6 - ku(lupu)
7 - liku(jo)
8 - tapo
9 - kenju

[humorous] [pu words] tan jan Kapilu[edit | edit source]

noka = 5
wan = -1
tu = -2
luka = -5
mute = -20
ale = -100

observation: every number must start with ale.
so like, 1 is ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka tu tu (-100 + 105 - 4)

so, from 1 to 10:
1 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka tu tu
2 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka tu wan
3 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka tu
4 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka wan
5 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka
6 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka tu tu
7 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka tu wan
8 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka tu
9 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka wan
10 = ale noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka noka

as you can see, it is clearly the best, most practical, most beautiful, most powerful and versatile number system every created.

[vigesimal] [humorous] [pu words] "jan tan telo", tan kulupu Eki[edit | edit source]

(2020-04-06, revised 2021-07-21)
inspired by the north england sheep-counting rhyme "Yan Tan Tethera". the only nimi sin it uses is that you need to have a stick and a pointy rock handy, or perhaps a ready supply of pebbles and a garment with a pocket

while counting your sheep (or knitting stitches) you simply recite this 20 word semi-nonsensical poem. whenever you get to "ma" you just score a stick with a sharp rock and start over. then each literal score represents a numerical score, a group of 20. its so easy! be sure to count heads frequently and not overgraze the commons!

jan tan, telo selo, mi,
waso taso, kala ala, ni,
sike ike, kama sama, a,
poki toki, kute mute, ma.

69₁₀ = [3 sticks w/ 20 marks each] jan tan telo selo mi waso taso kala ala

originally posted on reddit in april 2020 here. poem has been modified slightly here to better parallel the original rhyme.

[humorous] [pu words] [self-documenting?] Roman numerals kepeken sitelen pona, tan jan Wesawin[edit | edit source]

(2022-3-15, message)

To form a number, draw its Roman numeral representation using the most similar-looking sitelen pona.

1 - I - pini
5 - V - suli
10 - X - ala
50 - L - pi
100 - C - monsi
500 - D - alasa
1000 - M - sijelo

2 - II - pini pini
3 - III - pini pini pini
4 - IV - pini suli
6 - VI - suli pini
9 - IX - pini ala
42 - XLII - ala pi pini pini
99 - XCIX - ala monsi pini ala
404 - CDIV - monsi alasa pini suli
999 - CMXCIX - monsi sijelo ala monsi pini ala

[unary] [pu words] [self-documenting] nasin nanpa Pejano[edit | edit source]

1 wan
2 wan wan
3 wan wan wan
4 wan wan wan wan
5 wan wan wan wan wan

Reddit post

positional ("four two zero")[edit | edit source]

[binary] [humorous] lopo, tan kala pona Tonyu tan kule epiku Atawan[edit | edit source]

2020-08-08, .qid 1217493, message, screenshot

0 - po (powe)
1 - lo (lon)

210 - 102 - lopo
6910 - 10001012 - lopopopolopolo

[binary] [humorous] batman, tan akesi kon Nalasuni[edit | edit source]

2021-01-07, message, screenshot

0 - pa
1 - nan
2 - nanpa
3 - nanan

6910 - 10001012 - nanpapapananpanan
255 - nanananananananan (Patuman)

[trinary] [pu words][edit | edit source]

0 - ala
1 - wan
2 - tu

6910 - 21203 - tu wan tu ala

[quaternary] [pu words] tan jan Kawan[edit | edit source]

2021-16-09
A positional number system that uses the words already associated with numbers (ala, wan, tu, mute) without creating any new words, which I think is a plus.

0 = 0 = ala
1 = 1 = wan
2 = 2 = tu
3 = 3 = mute
4 = 10 = wan ala
5 = 11 = wan wan
6 = 12 = wan tu
7 = 13 = wan mute
8 = 20 = tu ala
100 = 1210 = wan tu wan ala
1000 = 33220 = mute mute tu tu ala
2021 = 133211 = wan mute mute tu wan wan

What you kinda have to learn are the powers of 4:

4^0 = 1
4^1 = 4
4^2 = 16
4^3 = 64
4^4 = 256
4^5 = 1024
4^6 = 4096
...

[seximal] standard (???)[edit | edit source]

0 - ala
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - tuli/san
4 - po
5 - luka
610 - 106 - kulupu (kulu)

6910 - 1536 - wan luka tuli/san

[seximal] [pu words] tan waso pi sona nanpa[edit | edit source]

2020-12-03, message, screenshot

0 - ala (obligatory)
1 - wan (obligatory)
2 - tu (obligatory)
3 - ma (Uuuh idk I just thought about it)
4 - pu (kinda sounds like "po")
5 - ko (only word that I found which wasn't mu and that has 2 letters)
. - mu (cuz Eko said it)
2.415052053524243123125404352354404354235032444 - tu mu pu wan ko ala ko tu ala ko ma ko tu pu tu pu ma wan tu ma wan tu ko pu ala pu ma ko tu ma ko pu pu ala pu ma ko pu tu ma ko ala ma tu pu pu pu

[seximal] [not humorous] [ku] kijetesantakalu, tan soweli nata[edit | edit source]

2020-12-04, message, screenshot; extra notes, screenshot

0 - /kijetesantaka'lu/
1 - /kijetesanta'kalu/
2 - /kijetesan'takalu/
3 - /kijete'santakalu/
4 - /kije'tesantakalu/
5 - /ki'jetesantakalu/
. - /'kijetesantakalu/ (tan waso pi sona nanpa; message, screenshot)

the stress is unmarked in written form, for efficiency (screenshot) and to follow the spirit of omekapo

kijetesantakalu kijetesantakalu - 30

notes:

[seximal] [half humorous] [ku] nanpa ki (kijetesantakalu epiku), tan jan pi soweli mun Josuwa (my take on kijetesantakalu, tan soweli nata)[edit | edit source]

2021-08-13

I like kijetesantakalu, but I find the idea of repetition and stress marking to be nasa mute. This is my solution, kijetesantakalu epiku or shorter nanpa ki.

How it works?[edit | edit source]

Just like kijetesantakalu, the word is divided into segments representing numbers in seximal:

ki-je(5)-te(4)-san(3)-ka(2)-ta(1)-lu(0)

As you can see, the syllable ki is ommited and plays no role in defining a number. Let's give it one!

In nanpa ki, ki- is used as the beginning of a number (think of it as 0x in base hex). The syllables after ki- are the numerals of the number. Simple, isn't?

Numerals (in examples, all but initial ki- are omitted):[edit | edit source]

0 - (ki)lu
1 - (ki)ta
2 - (ki)ka
3 - (ki)san
4 - (ki)te
5 - (ki)je

106 - 610 - kitalu

Examples[edit | edit source]

116 - 710 - kitata
326 - 2010 - kisanka
546 - 3410 - kijete
1006 - 3610 - kitalulu
1236 - 5110 - kitakasan

Notes:

  • soweli mun li soweli epiku a!
  • :toki_flushed:
  • feel free to @ me if you like the system or/and want to suggest some changes
  • nanpa ki li pona mute a!

[seximal] nasin nanpa suli, tan jan Emalan[edit | edit source]

2021-04-02

In examples, words in parentheses may be omitted.

Numerals:[edit | edit source]

0 – ala
1 – wan
2 – tu
3 – san
4 – po
5 – luka
106 – 610 – kulu (from kulupu)

Numerals are spoken predictably according to positional notation.

ala is only used for a lone zero in the 1s place or in positional senary (okay, fine, seximal) fractions (explained further below).

kulu is used for any placeholder zeros.

A lone wan before kulu may be omitted.

Examples:

106 – 610 – (wan) kulu
116 – 710 – wan wan
136 – 910 – wan san
206 – 1210 – tu kulu
216 – 1310 – tu wan
306 – 1810 – san kulu
546 – 3410 – luka po
556 – 3510 – luka luka
1006 – 3610 – (wan) kulu kulu
1016 – 3710 – (wan) kulu wan
1206 – 4810 – wan tu kulu
1236 – 5110 – wan tu san
2006 – 7210 – tu kulu kulu
2016 – 7310 – tu kulu wan
2306 – 9010 – tu san kulu
2346 – 9410 – tu san po

Fractions with a power of 106 in the denominator are denoted with lili after an integer and written with a separator (. or , depending on the user's country).

Examples:

0.36 – 0.510 – ala lili san / lili san
14.16 – 10.166..10 – wan po lili wan
2.136 – 2.2510 – tu lili wan san
10.036 – 6.0833..10 – kulu lili ala san
3.05033..6 – 3.14159..10 – san lili ala luka ala san san.. / san lili ala luka kulu san san..

To express a negative number, add weka to the end of the series of digits that constitute a single number.

To specify a positive number, add lon in the same way.

Examples:

-1 – wan weka
-206 – tu kulu weka
-3.36 – san lili san weka

To express a ratio, use lon to separate the numerator from the denominator.

(This will not be confused with the usage of lon described above as long as there is a number directly to each side of rational lon.)

Examples:

1/2 – wan lon tu
3/5 – san lon luka
14/56 – 10/510 – 2 – wan po lon luka

Arithmetic[edit | edit source]

Equations are structured like basic sentences.

The use of sama is optional. All examples are in base-6.

Addition: Use en between addends.

Examples:

1 + 1 = 2 – wan en wan li (sama) tu.
3 + 3 = 10 – san en san li (sama) kulu.
5.3 + 3.3 = 13 – luka lili san en san lili san li wan san.
10 + -3 = 3 – kulu en san weka li san.
1/4 + 2/4 = 3/4 – wan lon po en tu lon po li san lon po.

Subtraction: Separate the minuend from the subtrahend with weka (alternative to using the addition structure with negatives).

Examples:

2 - 1 = 1 – tu weka wan li wan.
10 - 3 = 3 – kulu weka san li san.
13 - 3.3 = 5.3 – wan san weka san lili san li luka lili san.
3 - -3 = 10 – san weka san weka li kulu.
2 - 3 = -1 – tu weka san li wan weka.

Multiplication: Use mute between factors.

Examples:

3 * 2 = 10 – san mute tu li kulu.
5 * -2 = -14 – luka mute tu weka li wan po weka.

Division: Separate the dividend from the divisor with kipisi (alternative to using rational lon).

Examples:

10 ÷ 2 = 3 – kulu kipisi tu li san.
-14 ÷ 5 = -2 – wan po weka kipisi luka li tu weka.

Exponentiation: Separate the base from the exponent with sewi.

Examples:

23 = 12 – tu sewi san li wan tu.
32 = 13 – san sewi tu li wan san.
102 = 100 – kulu sewi tu li kulu kulu.
50 = 1 – luka sewi ala li wan.
4.3 * 104 = 43 000 – po lili san mute kulu sewi po li po san kulu kulu kulu.

Root extraction: Separate the radicand from the index with noka.

Examples:

cbrt(12) = 2 – wan tu noka san li tu.
sqrt(13) = 3 – wan san noka tu li san.
sqrt(100) = 10 – kulu kulu noka tu li kulu.
4thrt(213) = 3 – tu wan san noka po li san.

Logarithms: To express a logarithm in an equation, use the following structure:

sewi tan [argument] pi anpa [base] li (sama) [exponent].

Examples:

log2(12) = 3 – sewi tan wan tu pi anpa tu li san.
log3(13) = 2 – sewi tan wan san pi anpa san li tu.
log10(100) = 2 – sewi tan kulu kulu pi anpa kulu li tu.

Order of operations: Some operations may share arguments. To reduce ambiguity, evaluate operations in the following order:

  1. Rationals
  2. Logarithms
  3. Exponentiation / root extraction (left to right)
  4. Multiplication / division (left to right)
  5. Addition / subtraction (left to right)

To alter the order of operations, use ni in place of an argument. If ni occupies the first argument of an operation, then the value of the previous operation becomes the first argument. If ni occupies the second argument of an operation, then the value of the following operation becomes the second argument. Follow ni with ale / ali to make the value of all previous / following operations the argument in an operation.

Examples:

13 + (2 * 2) = 21 – wan san en tu mute tu li tu wan.
(13 + 2) * 2 = 34 – wan san en tu, ni mute tu li san po.
(30 ÷ 3) - 1 = 5 – san kulu kipisi san weka wan li luka.
30 ÷ (3 - 1) = 13 – san kulu kipisi ni: san weka wan, li wan san.
1/4 + 3 – wan lon po en san
1/(4 + 3) – wan lon ni: po en san

Comparisons[edit | edit source]

Use these structures to compare the values of real numbers:

x > y – y la x li mute.
x >= y – y la x li mute anu sama.
x = y – y la x li sama.
x < y – y la x li lili.
x <= y – y la x li lili anu sama.

Examples:

3 < 4 – po la san li lili.
1/3 > 1/4 – wan lon po la wan lon san li mute.
1/2 = 3/10 – san lon kulu la wan lon tu li sama. / won lon tu li (sama) san lon kulu.
x >= 14 – wan po la seme li mute anu sama?

Complex Numbers[edit | edit source]

To indicate an imaginary value, follow the number with poka. To specify a real value (if necessary), follow the number with nasin. In the standard form of a complex number, the real part should precede the imaginary part. Any part of a complex number with a value of zero should be omitted.

Examples:

i – (wan) poka
2i – tu poka
3 + 5i – san (nasin) en luka poka
2 - 3i – tu (nasin) en san weka poka / tu (nasin) weka san poka

notes:

  • Originally conceived for a fictional society that communicates solely through toki pona
  • Yeah, it’s a lot, but compared to the entire field of mathematics, this numeral / mathematical system is as limited as toki pona compared to any natural language, if not more so.
  • Originally used ku instead of kulu before the release of Toki Pona Dictionary, known as ku.

[seximal] [pu words] nasin nanpa pi jan Silipi[edit | edit source]

2021-12-28

0 - ala (pu)
1 - wan (pu)
2 - tu (pu)
3 - kule (justification: Three primary colors, sitelen pona glyph has a triangle)
4 - soweli (or mu for short) (justification: most land animals have four legs)
5 - luka (justification: hands have five fingers)

note: this is very similar to jan Tomen numeral (but independantly arrived at), except base six instead of base ten.

[seximal] nasin nanpa pi jan Ino[edit | edit source]

2022-03-29, message (not the actual invention of the system, but the first place it was described in one message)

0 - ala (pu)
1 - wan (pu)
2 - tu (pu)
3 - kiki (because triangles are pointy)
4 - leko (because squares are squarey)
5 - luka (because hands have 5 fingers)

For multi-digit numbers, just say one digit after another.

[seximal] [nimi pu taso] kipisi nimi, tan jan Imo[edit | edit source]

2022-03-07
Numbers are expressed as proper modifiers. Digits are ordered from smallest to largest, and consist of one syllable each. Letters used for 3 and 4 may vary.

0: la (from ala)
1: wa (from wan)
2: tu (from tu)
3: sa (from Japanese san)
4: te (from Greek tessera)
5: lu (from luka)
seximal point: n
four nif twelve and fifsy three pernif: nanpa Salunlatute

[decimal] socks numeral (based on cantonese), tan socks[edit | edit source]

2019-07-17, message, screenshot

0 - lenke
1 - jatu
2 - ini
3 - san
4 - se
5 - nun
6 - loku
7 - take
8 - patu
9 - kajo

1749 - jatu take se kajo
867-5309 - patu loku take nun san lenke kajo

[decimal] [pu words] tan jan Tomen[edit | edit source]

2020-08-19, message, screenshot

0 - ala
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - kule (tp has 3 basic colors)
4 - soweli (quadrupeds)
5 - luka
6 - pipi (insects' legs, beehives)
7 - esun (the week thing, "fortune" - luck associated with wealth)
8 - nasin (cardinal points)
9 - mun (solar system planets + moon)

219 - tu wan mun; TWM

[decimal] [humorous] kijetesantakalu polinpin, tan jan Kita (shameless self-promotion)[edit | edit source]

2020-11-20, message, screenshot

0 - ki
1 - je
2 - te
3 - san
4 - ta
5 - ka
6 - lu
7 - po
8 - lin
9 - pin
. - mu

69.420 - lu pin mu ta te ki

notes:

  • kijetesantakalu
  • polinpin
  • 🆕 mu
  • collides with:
    • te, saving us from zese-style quotation marks
    • san, which was already gonna be 3
    • po, which was gonna be 4 but that's englishy (good thing we're replacing it with the oh-so-international word polinpin)
  • no flaws it's perfect
  • 4 and 2 are pretty close to each other, as in ala/ale; this is a bit less of a deal here because they're stressed syllables i said no flaws

[decimal] [pu words] sequential numerals with poka, tan jan Ke Tami[edit | edit source]

2021-02-16, message; most probably based on a misunderstanding on jan Wesi's base 5 nasin

0 - ala
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - tu wan
4 - tu tu
5 - luka
6 - luka wan
7 - luka tu
8 - luka tu wan
9 - luka tu tu
10 - wan poka ala
11 - wan poka wan
35 - tu wan poka luka
345 657 132 - tu wan poka tu tu poka luka poka luka tu poka wan poka tu wan poka tu

notes:

  • There are more standard ways to spell numbers through en/li/e particles or others
  • Does work with other bases, though

[decimal] nasin nanpa nimi, tan kijetesantakalu Iwan[edit | edit source]

2022-05-07, message;

Numbers
0 - silo
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - san
4 - po
5 - papu
6 - sisu
7 - sepen
8 - eto
9 - nana

Examples
507 - papu silo sepen
220 - tu tu silo

[hex] [humorous] kijetesantakalu polinpin sutopatikuna, tan jan Kita[edit | edit source]

>2020-11-20, exact origin date unknown, in part since it's easy to invent separately

[0-9 as in kijetesantakalu polinpin]
1010 - A16 - su
B16 - to
C16 - pa
D16 - ti (si if you're not so brave)
E16 - ku
F16 - na

6942010 - 10F2C16 - je ki na te pa

notes:

  • can be used as a very awful letter system by speaking the unicode codepoints of the letters, turning "4nf95q643hf8wy4987fqn" into «34 6e 66 39 35 71 36 34 33 68 66 38 77 79 34 39 38 37 66 71 6e» into Santa Luku Lulu Sanpin Sanka Poje Sanlu Santa Sanlin Popo Popin Santa Sanpin Sanlin Sanpo Lulu Poje Luku
  • there's also talk of a base-6 using only sutopatikuna but idk if i wanna put 3 variants of this system

[tetroctal] tan jan Kita[edit | edit source]

2022-04-29

0  1  2  3  -  pu po pa pe
4  5  6  7  -  tu to ta te
8  9  A  B  -  ku ko ka ke
C  D  E  F  -  lu lo la le
G  H  I  J  -  su so sa se
K  L  M  N  -  mu mo ma me
O  P  Q  R  -  nu no na ne
S  T  U  V  -  pi ki si ni

if the preceding syllable has the same consonant, replace the current syllable's consonant with either w or j (canonically j is for u/o and w for a/e/i but you can mix it up a bit)

6942010 - 23PC32 - pa pe no lu - pawenolu - nanpa Pawenolu (or nanpa Japenolu becuase there's a p in the nanpa?)

notes:

  • you can turn this into hex by leaving blank either the most significant bit (p/t/k/l) or middle bit (p/k/s/n), the former is more logical but the latter is somewhat more distinct

[decimal] lojban, tan jan Tepo[edit | edit source]

2022-10-03

0 li no
1 li pa
2 li le
3 li si
4 li po
5 li nu
6 li ka
7 li se
8 li wi
9 li so

la 32768 li silesekawi

[senary] [signed digits] [half humorous] nasin nanpa kijetesantakalu pona, tan jan Meje[edit | edit source]

2023-05-10, blog post

nasin nanpa kijetesantakalu pona is a numbering system in toki pona which uses the syllables of the word “kijetesantakalu” to represent the digits (-3 to 3) of a signed-digit Senary number, in the order of highest-to-lowest digits.

The digits are represented as follows:

  • “ki”: -3
  • “je”: -2
  • “te”: -1
  • “san”: 0
  • “ta”: 1
  • “ka”: 2
  • “lu”: 3


1: "nanpa te"

4: "nanpa ta ki"

75: “nanpa ka ki je”

hybrid ("four hundred two ten")[edit | edit source]

[decimal] [pu words] nasin nanpa Wan, tan jan Tamalu[edit | edit source]

Improved version over nasin nanpa Pi

Digits (reason below):

0=ala, 1=wan, 2=tu, 3=sin, 4=lipu, 5=luka, 6=pan, 7=len, 8=mama, 9=suli

At any point, spell the digits. Use mute before a number to introduce a cardinal number, if necessary. Use pi to introduce scientific notation XYZ pi W = X.YZ *10^W (first digit has weight 10^W).

10 = wan ala, 15 = wan luka, 73 = len sin, 984 = suli mama lipu, 100 = wan pi tu

602,200,000,000,000,000,000,000 = pan ala tu tu pi tu sin (approximation of Avogadro's constant)

1.79 = wan len suli pi ala (someone's height in meters)

In these offices there are 73 people =jan pi mute len sin li lon tomo pali ni

Finally, use weka before a number to add a negative sign. Use en to add numbers, as usual. You can compound pi's. It associates on the right X pi (Y pi Z)

-66 = weka pan pan

0.075 = len luka pi weka tu (daily recommended grams of intake per day of vitamin C for a 19-30 y.o. female)

6.62*10^−34 = pan pan tu pi weka sin lipu (~planck's constant)

-0.001 = weka wan pi weka sin

1,000,282 = wan pi pan en tu mama tu

10^80 = wan pi mama pi tu = estimation of number of atoms in the universe 100000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

10^(10^(100)) = wan pi wan pi wan ala ala (a googolplex)

Feel free to use the additive system with wan, tu, luka, if mute was not added at the beginning:

jan tu tu ni li jan pona mi.

jan ni pi mute lipu li jan pona mi.

Reason for digit choices:

0,1,2,5 are common.

3 sin, 4 lipu, 6 pan, 7 len: number of strokes in sitelen pona (and len is like lipu with 3 extra lines)

8 mama: sitelen pona is two circles as an 8 is.

9 suli: it's the largest of all digits.

[quinary] [pu words] tan jan Wija[edit | edit source]

2021-02-02, message, screenshot
because why the heck does "luka tu" not mean two hands of things

1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - tu wan
4 - tu tu
5 - luka
10 - luka tu
15 - luka tu wan
25 - luka luka
etc.
use "poka" to add numbers

11 - luka tu poka wan
69 - luka luka tu poka luka tu wan poka tu tu
420 - luka luka luka tu wan poka luka luka poka luka tu tu

[seximal] tan jan Inwin[edit | edit source]

2021-01-02?, message, screenshot; the sender is kule epiku Atawan, but soweli nata says it's actually by jan Inwin: message, screenshot

  • = optional if ppl feel like being more "semi-standard"

1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - san
4 - neja / po*
5 - luka

106 - kulu[pu*]
116 - likujo [/kulu wan]
126 - kulu tu

206 - tu kulu
246 - tu kulu neja

306 - san kulu
406 - neja kulu
436 - neja kulu san
506 - luka kulu
556 - luka kulu luka

if someone wants to go to thirty-six (which isn't recommended, since this system is built for dice rolls & maybe hours since those fit under thirty-six & fit nicely into base-six, maybe even days of the month since none of those exceed thirty-one), the higher exponent reduplicates the ku- in kulu, so:
1006 - kukulu
1536 - kukulu luka kulu san
2006 - tu kukulu
10006 - kukukulu
100006 - kukukukulu

132056 - kukukukulu san kukukulu tu kukulu luka (= two-thousand two-hundred twenty-one i.e. don't use base-six for gregorian dates)

[decimal] [pu words] nanpa Pi, tan jan Tamalu[edit | edit source]

2021-10-10, Extended explanation in the reddit post, there are more examples there. Two rules:

  • A) List the number's digits in decimal one after the other. Use commas to separate them (pauses when speaking). A comma can be omitted if there is no ambiguity. Optionally you can have "a" instead of comma. Digits use additivity like in the following. Each digit uses words in decreasing order to reduce ambiguity.

Digits:
0 - ala
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - tu wan
4 - tu tu
5 - luka
6 - luka wan
7 - luka tu
8 - luka tu wan
9 - luka tu tu
Examples:
22 - tu, tu
37 - tu wan, luka tu
352 - tu wan, luka, tu
121 - wan, tu, wan
1500 - wan, luka, ala, ala

  • B) Optionally, say digitsA + pi + digitsB. This is interpreted as: The "weight" of the first digit in digitsA is 10^(the number digitsB expresses), and then each following digit has a weight that is decreased by a factor of 10. You can stop earlier or introduce decimals.

1500 = wan luka pi tu wan
1,400,000,000,000 (1.4 trillion) = wan, tu tu pi wan, tu
Approximation of Avogadro's constant:
602,200,000,000,000,000,000,000 = luka wan, ala, tu, tu pi tu, tu wan
1.79 = wan, luka tu, luka tu tu pi ala
50.3 = luka, ala, tu wan pi wan

pi is used because when you say 2000 you are saying the two of the third (power of ten) that is tu pi tu wan.

  • C) Extra rule (can be ignored). Use weka at the beginning of a list of digits as a minus sign. It can go both before pi and after pi. weka in the middle means the digit is negative

-27 = weka tu, luka tu
-100 = weka wan pi tu
-4.71 = weka tu tu, luka tu, wan pi ala
0.0082 = luka tu wan, tu pi weka tu wan
0.000000000001 = wan pi weka wan, tu ( 10^(-12) )
-0.033 = weka tu wan tu wan pi weka tu

91 = wan weka wan wan (91 = 100 - 10 + 1)

[decimal] toki ma (old)[edit | edit source]

0 - ala
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - san
4 - po
5 - luka
6 - luka wan
7 - luka tu
8 - luka san
9 - luka po

10 - ten
13 - ten san
30 - san ten
100 - kenta

420 - po kenta tu ten

×1000 - mila
10 000 - ten mila
100 000 - kenta mila
×1 000 000 - mijon
×1 000 000 000 - mila mijon
×1 000 000 000 000 - mijon mijon

3 451 703 - san mijon po kenta luka ten wan mila luka tu kenta san

[decimal] toki ma (new)[edit | edit source]

1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - san
4 - po
5 - lima
6 - sesi
7 - sepen
8 - oto
9 - newen

10 - ten
13 - ten san
30 - san ten
100 - kenta

420 - po kenta tu ten

×1 000 - kilo
×1 000 000 - meka
×1 000 000 000 - kika

300602 - san kenta kilo sesi kenta tu

% (= /100) - senti

[decimal] toki pona epansa[edit | edit source]

<2020-04-29 (last-modified in request data), website

1 - wan
2 - tu
5 - luka
20 - luka en noka (number of digits on hands and feet)
100 - kenta
×1000 - mila

1.23 - wan en nanpa tu nanpa tu wan
3/5 - tu wan pi luka

2017 - tu mila luka luka luka tu
1972 - mila luka tu tu kento tu wan luka en noka luka luka tu
7 000 000 000 - luka tu mila mila mila
3.14 - tu wan en nanpa wan nanpa tu tu
70% - tu wan luka en noka luka luka pi kento

[decimal] [pu words?] pi kulupu Si, tan jan Lentan[edit | edit source]

2021-02-02, message, screenshot

×10 - mute Teka
×100 - mute Eto
×1000 - mute Kilo
×10^6 - mute Meka
×10^9 - mute Kika
×10^12 - mute Tela

421 - pi mute Eto tu tu Teka tu en wan

[hexadecimal] [binary] hex/binary hybrid system, tan jan Pensa[edit | edit source]

License for this section: CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication

Expanded version of this purely binary system.

1 - wan
2 - tu
4 - po
8 - ka

16 - sisi
256 - lala
4096 - nene

Numbers up to 15 work additively (15 = ka po tu wan). These correspond with heximal digits or 4 bit chunks of binary numbers. When placed in front of the higher numbers they multiply.

32 = tu sisi = 2*16
1024 = po lala = 4*256
80 = po wan sisi = (4+1)*16
100 = po tu sisi po = (4+2)*16 + 4

360 (hexadecimal: 168) = lala po tu sisi ka
32 800 (hexadecimal: 8020) = ka nene tu sisi
1984 (hexadecimal: 7C0) = po tu wan lala ka po sisi

This is enough for 16 bit binary or 4 digit hexadecimal, which goes up to 65 535.

If you're nasa and you want to go even higher, you can go up to 64 bit with the following words - enough to reach 18 quintillion.

mensan - 164 (65 536)
junlan - 168 (4 294 967 296)
onwin - 1612 (281 474 976 710 656)

23 081 000 = lala po tu sisi mensan tu wan nene tu sisi ka
= (256 + 4*16)*65536 + 3*4096 + 2*16 + 8

All words have unique first letters, so numbers can be abbreviated easily.
(po tu wan lala ka po sisi → PTWL-KPS)

etymologies:

  • ka - a priori, made to sound similar to tu and po. (All plosives and back(ish) vowels.)
  • sisi ← sisin ← sixteen
  • lala ← Maori rua rau (two hundred)
  • nene ← nena (i.e. a heap/mountain of stuff. And I hadn't used the letters n or e yet.)
  • mensan ← lensan ← lesa ← Javanese leksa (ten thousand)
  • junlan ← kunlan ← kunla ← Javanese gulma (billion)

(first letters of mensan and junlan were changed to have unique first letters)

  • onwin - a priori, from letters I hadn't used much yet

notes:

  • very logical and efficient
  • very impractical for everyday use

[decimal] [humorous] [pu words] nomper, tan jan Kita tan ijoj Ponsi[edit | edit source]

2021-03-20, 1, ss, 2, ss; nimi pi nanpa 7 tan jan Olipija

0 - meli (nun)
1 - sewi (won)
2 - tawa (to)
3 - ken (free)
4 - tan (for)
5 - wawa (vive)
6 - unpa (sex)
7 - akesi (serpent)
8 - moku (ate)
9 - mi (mine)

10 - tomo (den)
11 - awen (a living)
12 - ala (doesn't)

x + 10 - x lawa (dean)
x * 10 - x telo (tea)
exceptions for the above:

  • 2 - kalama (tune)
  • 3 - linja (fur)
  • 5 - kala (fish)

57 - kala telo akesi (fish tea serpent)

100 - alasa (hunted)

[pu words] [self documenting?] [centesimal (base 100)] nasin nanpa pona, tan jan Kapilu tan jan Tepo[edit | edit source]

See: nasin nanpa pona

2021-07-24, message, documentation in toki pona, Wikipesija

numbers up to 100 are same as pu advanced:
1 - wan
2 - tu
5 - luka
20 - mute

ale is 100, but multiplies the total so far instead of adding.

100 - wan ale, ale
200 - tu ale, ale ale
10000 - wan ale ale
69420 - luka wan ale mute mute mute mute luka luka tu tu ale mute

it is possible to ignore this and just say "ale" repeatedly and still be understood as addition. but it is preferred to start numbers with "wan ale" instead of "ale" to make it clear what number system you're using.

notes

  • backwards compatible
  • epiku
  • the only nasin nanpa pona

[henpentahexasnaoctoctal (base 1984)] [humorous] nasin nanpa owe, tan ijo Son[edit | edit source]

numbers up to 1984 are the same as pu advanced:
1 - wan
2 - tu
5 - luka
20 - mute
100 - ale

1984 is owe, and multiplies the total so far.
1984 - wan owe, owe
3936256 - wan owe owe
7884419 - tu owe luka wan owe tu wan

notes

  • the exact same as nasin nanpa pona, but instead of using 100 as its base, it uses 1984.
  • if there is anything i didn't cover it's probably the same as nasin nanpa pona
  • o kama sona e nasin nanpa pona

[seximal] nasin nanpa pipi[edit | edit source]

numbers from one to six:
1 - soko (one leg)
2 - waso (two legs)
3 - waso soko (three legs)
4 - soweli (four legs)
5 - soweli soko (five legs)
6 - pipi (six legs)

numbers above 6 work like Japanese or Mandarin: you say the digit 1-5 followed by the power of 6 given by the number of "pipi"

10 - soko pipi soweli
17 - waso soko soweli soko
36 - soko pipi pipi
42 - soko pipi pipi soko pipi
100 - waso pipi pipi soweli pipi soweli

note:

  • to avoid confusion where these words could be interpreted as modifiers, you can use "mute" as a particle similar to nanpa, i.e.

    soko mute soko pipi waso - eight mushrooms

pros:

  • maximally cute

other[edit | edit source]

[pu words] 2-capped, tan kulupu Pirahã ala[edit | edit source]

1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - mute

69 - mute

notes:

  • as jan sewi intended
  • extends infinitely to higher numbers
  • as unambiguous as possible without nimisin
  • all pu words
  • everyone and their dog will understand you
  • no flaws it's perfect

[pu words] double-increment system / nasin nanpa pi nimi tu, tan jan Poli[edit | edit source]

2022-05-20, Reddit post

nanpa : "wan" =1
| "tu" =2
| nanpa "wan" =$1+1
| nanpa "tu" =$1*2

1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - tu wan
4 - tu tu
5 - tu tu wan
6 - tu wan tu
7 - tu wan tu wan
8 - tu tu tu
9 - tu tu tu wan
10 - tu tu wan tu
100 - tu wan tu tu tu wan tu tu

Note that "wan wan" is illegal, and "wan tu" is replaced with "tu" at the start of a number phrase.

notes:

  • Can count arbitrarily high
  • Convertible to and from binary using only simple replacement rules
  • Uses only nimi pu
  • Preserves the pu meanings of "wan", "tu", "tu wan", and "tu tu"

[pu words] multiplicative kulupu's, tan jan Ke Tami[edit | edit source]

aka "nasin nanpa kulupu", possibly others have also come up with it idk (2020-12-08, message, other message, screenshot)

1 - wan
1 - tu
3 - tu wan
4 - tu tu
5 - luka
10 - luka luka
20 - mute
100 - ale
1000 - luka luka pi kulupu ale

wan pi kulupu wan=wan
tu pi kulupu wan=tu
wan pi kulupu tu=tu
tu pi kulupu tu=tu tu
...
wan pi kulupu luka luka=luka luka
tu pi kulupu luka luka=mute
tu tu pi kulupu luka luka=mute mute
...
luka luka pi kulupu ale=ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale

1 million = ale pi kulupu ale pi kulupu ale

notes:

  • allows for any base (although a base similar to the one most people are familiar with is preferred, like kulupu luka luka or kulupu ale)
  • allows for preserving magnitude of numbers
  • not useful for specific big-scale numbers unless added by en or other particles
  • this is kind of by design, because you want to communicate efficiently what kind of big number you're dealing with and anything more specific becomes complicated both to describe and to imagine
  • really big numbers still get pretty long

[pu words] [self-documenting] analogy-based, tan jan Lonka[edit | edit source]

2020-12-21, no formal write-up, beginning of discussion

all numbers are based on the amount of other things
~8 - pi mute pi mun suli
~125 - pi mute nimi
~100k - pi mute pi linja lawa
~A Lot - pi mute (pi) suno lili

notes:

  • similar discussion here

[pu words] "binary" multiplicative, tan Cuymacu[edit | edit source]

2021-01-07, reddit post

1 - wan
2 - tu
4 - tu tu
8 - tu tu tu
16 - tu tu tu tu

5 jans - jan tu tu en jan wan (anu, jan wan en jan tu tu)
13 jans - jan tu tu tu en jan tu tu en jan wan

5+ jans - jan tu tu en jan

[pu words] multiplicative when ascending order[edit | edit source]

2021-01-07, reddit comment, may have existed before

same as pu advanced, but:
10 - 2*5 - tu luka
15 - 3*5 - tu wan luka

2021 - 20*100+20+1 - mute ale mute wan

pi kalama nasa, math-based, tan akesi kon Nalasuni[edit | edit source]

2021-01-21, message, screenshot

1 - j
2 - w
3 - k
4 - p
5 - l
6 - n
7 - m
8 - t
9 - s
= - a
+ - e

  • - i

- - o
/ - u

42 - 6*7= - nima
42 - 5*8+2= - litewa
42 - 6+6+6+6+6+6+6= - nenenenenenena

sitelen pi jan pi ma Maja, tan moku Pan Nasa[edit | edit source]

2021-04-08, message, screenshot

jan pi ma Maja li pana e sona tawa mi. It is base 20 where
. ~ nanpa wan

~ nanpa tu

l ~ nanpa luka (lowercase L)
o ~ nanpa ala

So... 169 = l:. l::
notes:

  • the difference between 105 (l l) and 10 (ll) is just a space

[humorous] nanpa nanpa, tan jan Julia kule[edit | edit source]

2021-04-19, message, screenshot

1: nanpa
2: nanpa
3: nanpa
100: nanpa
any number: nanpa

  • pros: embraces toki pona's minimalist ideology. all betting is fair with nanpa:nanpa odds, and everything is only nanpa mani
  • cons: cannot do math in any meaningful way (secretly also pro)

nasin nanpa pi nanpa sewi, tan jan Solija[edit | edit source]

2021-08-24, gdoc

1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - san
4 - po
5 - luka
6 - ena
7 - jesi
9 - no

All other numbers are defined multiplicatively. Except that "wan" means add one (since you'll never multiply by one). All operations are carried out from left to right.

8 - po tu
21 - jesi san
69 - po po wan po wan (4*4+1=17, 17*4+1=69)
420 - jesi luka po san

  • pro: much easier to give estimates than exact numbers (follows toki pona's philosophy of simplicity)
  • pro: there are multiple ways to say many numbers, you have to define what that number means to you, in the current context (another alignment with toki pona's goals)
  • con: it takes a week to figure out how to say a number and another week for someone else to figure out what number you said
  • please do check out the gdoc linked in the subheader it explains more

[decimal] [pu words] [humorous] [self-documenting] lipu pi ike sona ale[edit | edit source]

This is an ancient text I found deep beneath the ruins of Babylon.

"lipu pi ike sona ale"

toki!

mi olin e jan ike ale. lipu ni li tawa ona.

moli li pona, moli li lon.

lipu ala: "akesi mi"

nanpa E li jo ale e nanpa I. nanpa I li jo ale e nanpa U. nanpa U li jo ale e ale.

mi jo e akesi pi nanpa E.

akesi pi nanpa E li utala e kala suli pi nanpa E la tenpo utala kama la akesi li pona anu kala suli li pona?

nanpa O li jo ale e nanpa A ale. nanpa A li jo ale e ale. nanpa E.

lipu wan: "nanpa sina li utala e nanpa ante"

nanpa sina li utala e nanpa ante la nanpa sina li kama e ni: nanpa li jo nanpa sina e nanpa ante.

tenpo tu la, nanpa luka luka li utala e nanpa luka luka la nanpa luka luka li kama e nanpa ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale ale.

tenpo ale la nanpa luka luka li utala e nanpa luka luka la nanpa luka luka li kama e nanpa Googol.

nanpa sina li suli e nanpa ante la tenpo pi nanpa sina la nanpa wan li utala e nanpa ante.

nanpa tu li suli e nanpa tu wan la nanpa tu li kama e nanpa luka tu wan.

lipu tu: "nanpa sina li moku e nanpa ante."

nanpa sina li moku e nanpa ante la nanpa sina li kama e nanpa sin.

nanpa sin li suli e nanpa sina la nanpa sina li kama e nanpa ante.

nanpa luka luka li moku e nanpa Googol la nanpa sin li nanpa ale.

lipu tu wan: "nanpa sina li jo e nanpa lili"

nanpa sina li jo e nanpa lili la nanpa lili ona luka luka li nanpa sina wan.

sike linja nanpa li nanpa luka wan la nanpa ni li jo e nanpa tu lili la nanpa ni li jo e nanpa luka tu wan lili.

[mixed radix] nasin nanpa pi kulupu nanpa mute, tan jan Lomu[edit | edit source]

This is a mixed radix multiplicative numbering system for toki pona made by me, jan Lomu (Rome#3129). I've made a google doc of it, that is essentially the below: gdoc

The crux of this system is that, when a lesser numeral precedes a greater numeral, or if two of the same numeral concatenate, they are multiplied. If the inverse occurs, they are simply added. This employs order of operations, multiplication is first, so “ali tu luka” is not 100 + 2 + 5, rather 100 + (2 * 5). This system is a mixed radix, so the different positions, rather than being powers of one base, are actually three distinct numbers: 5, 20, and 100. Any number in this system could potentially be represented in the style of [ale : mute : luka : wan].

It utilizes two non-pu words, san (three), and po (four). This is included for the sake of brevity, however these can certainly be replaced with tuwan and tutu for recognizability.

wan, tu, san, po, luka
one, two, three, four, five

luka wan, luka tu, luka san, luka po, tu luka
six, seven, eight, nine, ten

tu luka wan, tu luka tu, tu luka san, tu luka po, san luka
eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen

san luka wan, san luka tu, san luka san, san luka po, mute
sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty

mute wan, mute tu, mute san, mute po, mute luka
twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five

mute tu luka
thirty

po mute san luka san, po mute san luka po, ali
ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred

ali wan, ali tu, ali san, ali po, ali luka
one hundred one, one hundred two, one hundred three, one hundred four, one hundred five

ali ali
ten thousand

Here are some examples of numbers from 1-10,000 and how they would be represented:

luka po ali po mute luka [9:4:1:0]
nine hundred eighty-five [985]

po ali tu mute tu luka san [4:2:2:3]
four hundred fifty-three [453]

mute po ali tu mute san luka san [24:2:3:3]
two thousand four hundred fifty-eight [2458]

tu mute luka po ali tu luka wan [49:0:2:1]
four thousand nine hundred eleven [4911]

  • pro: able to represent large numbers in relatively short phrases
  • con: somewhat complex, not necessary unless one needs to easily represent large numbers

Thats all! Hope you enjoy.

[pu words] [any base] multiplicative with digit sets[edit | edit source]

2022-01-02, by kon jan pi linja wawa Alisu

  • seperate numbers through commas
  • lon marks the difference between numbers and digits
  • nanpa is required before any number
  • in order to reduce ambiguity, counts of things always go at the end of an item's description

numbers

wan  = 1
tu   = 2
luka = 5 (you could also use mute or even meso here)
sin  = x10, x100, etc.

wan         = 1
tu          = 2
tu wan      = 3
tu tu       = 4
luka        = 5
luka wan    = 6
luka tu     = 7
luka tu wan = 8
luka tu tu  = 9
wan sin     = 10
wan sin sin = 100
tu sin tu   = 22

digits

lili tu tu = 0.000000000XXX and so on...
lili tu wan = 0.000000XXX
lili tu = 0.000XXX
lili wan = 0.XXX
(optionally, you could include ante at start to indicate negative)
mute wan = XXX
mute tu = XXX,000
mute tu wan = XXX,000,000
mute tu tu = XXX,000,000,000 and so on...

examples
nanpa luka tu wan lon mute tu wan = 8,000,000
nanpa wan lon mute tu, luka lon mute wan = 2,005
nanpa wan sin sin sin sin luka = 20,005 (specifying a digit set isn't necessary for smaller numbers!)
nanpa luka tu sin tu sin tu wan sin wan sin = 72,310 (it does get long after a while)

mi pali e len lawa nanpa wan sin lon mute tu. -> I am creating 10,000 hats.

pros

  • allows for general ideas of numbers to be much more concise than specific numbers, but allows specific numbers to be represented if needed
  • allows for fractional and negative numbers
  • uses purely pu words and a (mostly) familiar additive system with sin representing a clear purpose
  • adaptable to any base even though decimal is used for the examples
  • allows for representation of extremely large numbers in a concise format like nanpa luka lon mute wan sin = 5,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000

cons

  • specific numbers are extremely verbose. this may be a feature and not a bug to some
  • representation of numbers of this size are very likely not necessary for a language like toki pona
  • potentially still ambiguous? including nanpa before all numbers helps but the end of the number is still weird.
  • it's yet another number system with specific quirks

[bijective quinary] [ku words][edit | edit source]

2022-02-28 jLisape u/13lisabeth, CC0
quinary with a digit for 5 but not 0

1 - wan (1)
2 - tu (2)
3 - san/tuli (3)
4 - po (4)
5 - luka (5)
6 - wan wan (11)
7 - wan tu (12)
...
10 - wan luka (15)
11 - tu wan (21)
...
30 - luka luka (55)
31 - wan wan wan (111)

pros:

  • no 'ala' in the middle of numbers. 'ala' means none, always.
  • fits existing vocab
  • compressible by stacking digits in sitelen pona

cons:

  • not backwards compatible
  • no way to talk about orders of magnitude, stuck at maximum precision since digits (quigits?) are just listed in order

[decimal] nasin nanpa pi toki pona li ike la waso Pini li pali e ni. nimi pi nasin nanpa ni li "nasin nanpa Wanlukaten"[edit | edit source]

2022-03-07 - waso Pini
Last Updated: 2022-5-20

nasin wan

Numbers
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - san
4 - po
5 - luka
6 - si
7 - se
8 - juli
9 - nin
0 - nun
10 - ten

Place Numbers
Ones - wan
Tens - ten
Hundreds - sepe
Thousands - kile
Millions - mile
Billions - pile
Trillions - sansile
Quadrillions - kasile
Quintillions - lukasile
Sextillions - sisile
Septillions - sesile
Octillions - julisile
Nonillion - ninsile
Decillion - tensile

Syntax
(place section)place number(li)digit(repeat)
e.g. 525,600 is written as kile sepe li luka. kile ten li tu. kile wan li luka. sepe li si.

To make a number negative add the phrase "pini nun la" to the beginning of the number.
e.g. -525,600 is written as pini nun la kili sepe li luka. kili ten li tu. kili wan li luka. sepe li si

If a digit is repeated a multitude of times you can write that it repeats from the higher place number to the smaller place number using tawa.
(Larger Place Number-"tawa"-Smaller Place Number-"li"-Digit)
e.g. 999,999,999,999,999,999,999,999,999,999 is written "tensile tawa wan li nin"
Notes
Any examples shown aren't the only way to say numbers and there can be multiple

The name of the system is just the words for one, five, and ten smashed together.

At this point in time, the system tops out at the decillion's place or tensile.

To get my big numbers like sansile and posile I added sile to the end of the number's digit.

nasin tu

Numbers
1 - wan
2 - tu
3 - san
4 - po
5 - luka
6 - si
7 - se
8 - juli
9 - nin
0 - nun
10 - ten

Notes
Numbers are written digit by digit with no place numbers.
e.g. 525,600 is luka tu luka si nun num

Negatives are created by adding pini nun la to the beginning of the number.
e.g. -525,600 is pini nun la luka tu luka si nun nun

[self-documenting] [pu words] full-sentence instructions for how a large number would be written down, tan jan Kuka[edit | edit source]

279,300 - jan li wile sitelen e nanpa ni la, ona o sitelen e tu, e luka tu, e luka tu tu, e tu wan, e ala, e ala, o pini sitelen.

999,999,999,998 - jan li wile sitelen e nanpa ni la, ona o sitelen e luka tu tu lon tenpo luka luka wan. tenpo ni la, ona o sitelen e luka tu wan, o pini sitelen.

14,568,883,000,000,003 - jan li wile sitelen e nanpa ni la, ona o sitelen e wan, e tu tu, e tu tu wan, e luka wan, e luka tu wan, e luka tu wan, e luka tu wan, e tu wan. tenpo ni la, ona o sitelen e ala lon tenpo luka tu wan. tenpo ni la, ona o sitelen e tu wan, o pini sitelen.

Note that these are just examples of how these instructions can be phrased. Any phrasing that provides clear and unambiguous instructions would work. One simple example of how the above descriptions can be slightly simplified might be:

279,300 - o sitelen e tu, e luka tu, e luka tu tu, e tu wan, e ala, e ala, o pini sitelen.

999,999,999,998 - o sitelen e luka tu tu lon tenpo luka luka wan, o sitelen e luka tu wan, o pini sitelen.

14,568,883,000,000,003 - o sitelen e wan, e tu tu, e tu tu wan, e luka wan, e luka tu wan, e luka tu wan, e luka tu wan, e tu wan, o sitelen e ala lon tenpo luka tu wan, o sitelen e tu wan, o pini sitelen.

[decimal] [pu words] [self-documenting] order of magnitude, tan jan Kita[edit | edit source]

2022-06-09

for when you don't need precision but also wanna be more concrete than just plain mute

1-9 - mute pi sitelen wan
10-99 - mute pi sitelen tu
100-999 - mute pi sitelen tu wan
etc.

[decimal] [pu words] order of magnitude 2, tan jan Kita[edit | edit source]

2022-06-09

1-9 - mute
10-99 - mute mute
100-999 - mute mute mute
etc.

even funkier (2022-06-25):

1-2 - mu
3-9 - mute
10-29 - mute mu
30-99 - mute mute
etc.

[pu words]? nasin nanpa mu (tan jan Sipiki)[edit | edit source]

numbers are treated as names in this system

headnouns:

mute - amounts, quantities, cardinal numbers nanpa - orders, placements, ordinal numbers

name construction[edit | edit source]

each prime lower than 17 gets its own syllable. these are multiplied together to get the final number.

2 - tu

3 - sa

5 - lu 7 - si

11 - pe 13 - ke

to say primes over 13, or composite numbers with prime factors over 13, use the prefix "wa", meaning "the next prime". this can be chained as many times as you want to get any arbitrarily high prime number.

examples[edit | edit source]

mute Satu - 6

nanpa Lutu - 10th

mute Pe - 11

mute Pepe - 121

mute Wawake - 19

mute Wawawawawawawawawaketu - 94

pros:

  • names of numbers are highly descriptive of their properties
  • great complement to nasin nanpa pona (many larger numbers are easier to say)
  • technically only pu words
  • yummy nice numbers are easy to say
  • no ambiguity

cons:

  • hard to count with
  • math (ew)
  • gross numbers (numbers with large prime factors) have 29 syllables

if you are the kind of person to want to do linear algebra in toki pona, then this is the system for you ig

[pu words] [humorous] nasin nanpa likujo, tan jan Osuka[edit | edit source]

2023-12-16

uses lyrics of the songs "likujo" and "luka tu wan" by jan Usawi to represent numbers, starting with wan meaning 1 from "likujo", and ending with e ale mi meaning 124 from "luka tu wan"

it can also indicate a few nonpositive numbers using lyrics before the first chorus of "likujo", starting with nanpa wan la kala ike en monsuta for −9 and ending with tenpo ale la mi toki suli e ijo pi olin mi for 0

pros:

  • no math needed
  • it has some negative numbers!
  • we all know you know these lyrics already

cons:

  • a lot of ambiguity—wan could be 1, 34, 42, 52, or 62
  • if you somehow don't know the lyrics...that's a lot to memorize