Foreign Language Influences in English - Counting

Counting

Counting in English is based on two different methods. The numbers from 13-19 follow the Germanic way of counting, while numbers from 20 on follow the French way of counting (with some simplifications). In Germanic languages, the numbers are read in a mixed way. So for 14 the German word is vierzehn which literally means four-ten (English: fourteen). However, in 18th century the Germanic way of counting was still used as can be found e.g. in Sing a Song of Sixpence. Nowadays, numbers of 20 and higher follow the French way, except 21, 31, 41, 51, 61, 71 and 70-99. E.g. French: vingt-quatre, English: twenty-four. However, numbers ending with one do not follow the French way. Numbers ending with one in French are bound with "et", e.g. French vingt-et-un literally means twenty-and-one. Numbers between 70 and 99 are built by multiplication and addition (French: quatre-vingt-dix-neuf literally means four-twenty-ten-nine (4*20 + 19)(compare: "Fourscore and seven years ago", or "threescore and ten").). Although the terms septante (70), octante (80) and nonante (90) are officially recognised by the Académie française, they remain rarely used by most French speakers, except in Belgium (and its former African colonies), Switzerland, parts of French-speaking Canada (Acadian French), Jèrriais, and some parts of France. However, octante (80) is now rare in Belgium where it has been supplanted by quatre-vingt and in Switzerland where it has been supplanted by huitante.