counting - LingoDigest

Counting in Base-20: A World Beyond Ten

6 min read

Why do we count in tens? While it seems natural, many cultures from the Mayans to the Basques developed sophisticated base-20 systems, likely inspired by counting on both fingers and toes. Journey with us into the world of vigesimal counting to discover how language shapes a fundamentally different way of seeing numbers and the world.

Asian Languages Syntax Morphology Language Learning

Why You Can’t Just “Count” in Thai

6 min read

Ever tried to say “two dogs” in Thai and been corrected? That’s because you can’t just count nouns; you need a special “measure word” called a classifier. This post dives into the fascinating world of Thai classifiers, revealing a unique system of logic that categorizes everything from people to pens in ways you’ve never imagined.