Hindustani numerals

Like many Indo-Aryan languages, Hindustani (Hindi and Urdu) has a decimal numeral system that is contracted to the extent that nearly every number 1–99 is irregular, and needs to be memorized as a separate numeral.

1-99

The numbers 1-99 largely evolved directly from the Sanskrit forms without being borrowed, and so are nearly all irregular.

For the number 0, Modern Standard Hindi tends to use śūnya (a Sanskrit tatsama) while Standard Urdu prefers sifr (borrowed from Arabic), though the native tadbhava-form is sunnā in Hindustani. Sometimes the ardha-tatsama form śūn is also used (semi-learned borrowing).

100-10¹⁸

After 100, the numerals repeat regularly as in any base system. Lakh and crore are common enough to have entered Indian English.

Written forms

In writing Hindi, numbers are usually represented using Devanagari numeral signs, while in Urdu the signs employed are those of a modified Eastern Arabic numeral system.

References