A Brief History of Roman Numerals

ROMAN NUMERALS
Empires may come, and empires may go, but one of the worlds most dominant and conquering
was the ancient Roman Empire from 500 BC to 476 AD. Even though Rome can boast of its
great political system, its Roman senate, its law, its army, its architecture and sculpture, its
luxury of life, and liberality of citizens, it is considered mathematically sterile, and its conquer
and consume style actually did little for the Mediterranean world’s store of scientific knowledge.
To say Rome had no Philomath’s would be an understatement at the very least.
Accepting the fact that there is no “Roman mathematics” per se, we can see that what little there
was indicates that the Romans had stood upon the shoulders of the Greeks. Whenever an original
mathematician did emerge in the state their efforts were directed primarily to the field of
engineering. These Roman mathematicians were called upon to lay out and construct a massive
network of roads and aqueducts throughout a huge empire, many which still survive today. They
drew up the plans for impressive monuments and buildings, and did cost analysis for the
construction. They also seemed to have valued the study of optics with respect to drawing light
in from the outside. The Roman mathematicians found intriguing ways to make measurements
across rivers. But still, an inspection of the surveying manuals shows that only the basics of
arithmetic, geometry, and optics were used in all of their work.
Interestingly, we can find no record of any mathematicians who lived and worked in Rome or
even published any works in Latin. It is generally believed that anyone who desired to study
mathematics for its theoretical properties were either discouraged from this endeavor or sent to
Alexandria as outcasts. There they could pursue their personal esoteric studies while isolated
from the higher lifestyle one was afforded in Rome. Rome was not interested in mathematics;
they believed it to be a limited art, useful only for the expansion and good of the Empire. It
suffices to say that the mathematics used by the Romans need only support the administration
and business of the Empire.
Today we find Roman numerals used as decorative additions to monuments and clock faces
possibly because of the pleasing and timeless beauty they add. The Roman system of numeration
provides us with another example of an additive numbering system with, however, a couple of
added perks: built-in subtraction and multiplication principles.
A Brief History of Roman Numerals

What is the history of Roman Numerals? Roman numerals, as the name suggests, originated in
ancient Rome. No one is sure when roman numerals were first used, but they far predate the
Middle Ages. Theories abound as to the origins of this counting system, but it is commonly
believed to have started with the ancient Etruscans. The symbol for one in the Roman numeral
system probably represented a single tally mark of the kind people would notch into wood or dirt
to keep track of items or events they were counting.
Where are Roman Numerals Used in Modern Times?
Roman Numbers are still used today in a variety of applications. If you are creating an outline for
a story or report, you will be expected to use Roman Numerals. They are also commonly used on
clocks and watch to number book chapters, films and big events. Monarchs and Popes are
usually numbered with this system as are guitar chords and the cranial nerves.
Roman Numerals
Roman numerals are written as combinations of the seven letters in the table below. The letters
can be written as capital (XVI) or lower-case letters (xvi).
Roman Numerals
I=1 C = 100
V=5 D = 500
X = 10 M = 1000
L = 50
You can use a roman numerals chart or conversion table to lookup roman numerals or you can
easily learn how to calculate them yourself with a few simple rules.
How to Translate Roman Numerals

If smaller numbers follow larger numbers, the numbers are added. If a smaller number precedes
a larger number, the smaller number is subtracted from the larger. For example, if you want to
say 1,100 in Roman Numerals, you would say M for 1000 and then put a C after it for 100; in
other words 1,100=MC in Roman Numerals.
Some more examples:
 VIII = 5+3 = 8
 IX = 10-1 = 9
 XL = 50-10 = 40
 XC = 100-10 = 90
 MCMLXXXIV = 1000+(1000-100)+50+30+(5-1) = 1984
Roman Numeral Table
1 I 14 XIV 27 XXVII 150 CL
2 II 15 XV 28 XXVIII 200 CC
3 III 16 XVI 29 XXIX 300 CCC
4 IV 17 XVII 30 XXX 400 CD
5 V 18 XVIII 31 XXXI 500 D
6 VI 19 XIX 40 XL 600 DC
7 VII 20 XX 50 L 700 DCC
8 VIII 21 XXI 60 LX 800 DCCC
9 IX 22 XXII 70 LXX 900 CM
10 X 23 XXIII 80 LXXX 1000 M
11 XI 24 XXIV 90 XC 1600 MDC
12 XII 25 XXV 100 C 1700 MDCC
13 XIII 26 XXVI 101 CI 1900 MCM
This is another example of an additive numbering system, and as such the rules for constructing
numbers using the Roman numerals are basically simple. If the symbols decreased in value from
left to right their values are added.
Example 1.4.1
Translate the following Roman numbers into Hindu-Arabic numbers.
(a) DCCCXXV
(b) MCCCXXXI
(c) DCLXVI

Solutions
. . . to part (a) Referring back to Figure 1.4.1 we can find the numerical values for each of the
symbols used in the Roman number given. We should find that
DCCCXXV = 500 + 300 + 20 + 5 = 825.
. . . to part (b) In a similar way we should find that
MCCCXXXI = 1000 + 300 + 30 + 1 = 1331.
. . . to part (c) Likewise,

DCLXVI = 500 + 100 + 50 + 10 + 5 + 1 = 666.
The Romans would always strive for brevity in the representation of their numbers. Note in the
first example how the representation for 800 was NOT 8 letter Cs but instead utilized a
combination of 500 and 300 (DCCC).
REFERRENCES
http://www.educationoasis.com/curriculum/Math/res/roman_numerals.htm
http://www.novaroma.org/via_romana/numbers.html
http://www.romannumerals.co.uk/
http://mathematics.gulfcoast.edu/mgf1107ll/Chap1Sec4Lesson1.htm

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ROMAN NUMERALS

A Brief History of Roman Numerals

How to Translate Roman Numerals

Some more examples:

Translate the following Roman numbers into Hindu-Arabic numbers.

DCCCXXV = 500 + 300 + 20 + 5 = 825.

. . . to part (b) In a similar way we should find that

MCCCXXXI = 1000 + 300 + 30 + 1 = 1331.

. . . to part (c) Likewise,

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