Chapter 101

THE ORDINAL NUMBERS.

§ 262. By referring to § 259, we see that -m was an early sign of the superlative degree. This bears upon the numerals _seven_, _nine_, and _ten_.

These are _cardinal_ numbers. Nevertheless, the present chapter is the proper place for noticing them.

There is good reason for believing that the final -n is no part of the original root. Thus,--

a. _Sev-en_ = the Latin _sept-em_, where the -m is equivalent to the -n. But in the Greek [Greek: hepta], and the Scandinavian _syv_, and _sju_, neither -n nor -m occur.

b. _Ni-ne_.--This same applies here. The Latin form is _nov-em_; but the Greek and Norse are [Greek: ennea] and _niu_.

c. _Ten_.--The older form is _ti-h-un_, in Latin _de-c-em_. The English -n is the Latin -m. Nevertheless, in the Greek and Norse the forms are [Greek: deka] and _tuo_.

§ 263. What explains this? The following hypothesis. Some of the best German authorities believe, that the -m, expressive of the superlative degree, was also used to denote the _ordinal character_ (_ordinality_) _of the numerals_; so that the -m- in _deci-m-us_, was the -m- in _ulti-m-us_ and _exti-m-us_. This is the first step in the explanation.

§ 264. The next is, to suppose that certain _cardinal_ numerals have taken and retained the _ordinal_ form; these being the--

_Latin._ _English._ _Greek._ _Norse._

_Sept-em_, _sev-en_, as opposed to the [Greek: hepta] _sjau_. _Nov-em_, _ni-ne_ " " [Greek: ennea] _níu_. _Dec-em_, _te-n_ " " [Greek: deka] _tíu_.

I give no opinion as to the accuracy or erroneousness of this view.

§ 265. _Thir-teen_, &c., is _three_ with _ten_ added, or 3 + 10.

§ 266. _Thir-ty_, &c., is _three tens_ (_three decades_), or 3 × 10. In Moeso-Gothic we find the -ty in the fuller form _tig_ = [Greek: dek-as] in Greek.

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