Little-endian Numeral System?

[Mednij]

Are there any natural languages that place the least significant digit first?

Specifically, consistently and with large numbers (i.e. not in compound words like "fourteen").

[prettydragoon]

There are several languages that put ones before tens, either always or in some cases (below 20, say). But more than that?

[din]

Dutch and German

Dutch:
25 = vijfentwintig (five-and-twenty)
87 = zevenentachtig (seven-and-eighty)
41 = eenenveertig (one-and-forty)

...all the way up to a hundred. Then it's:
133 = honderddrieëndertig (hundred-three-and-thirty)

[KathTheDragon]

On a related note, do any languages write the numbers smallest digit first, and if so, do they also say it that way?

[Dē Graut Bʉr]

I'm not entirely sure, but I don't think so.

[Drydic]

Are there any natural languages that place the least significant digit first?

Specifically, consistently and with large numbers (i.e. not in compound words like "fourteen").

That's not a compound, at least not how you're thinking it is. Fourteen is from 'four-ten' (back in the Germanic days), not from 'four+teen[ager]'.
Even if it were, I can't see how it's not arbitrary to exclude 13-19.

[Miekko]

On a related note, do any languages write the numbers smallest digit first, and if so, do they also say it that way?

The direction in which we write numbers was *kept* when they were borrowed from the Arabs, in spite of us and they writing in different directions. Thus, the arabic numbers originally were, and partially still are written with the smallest digit first.

[Mednij]

Are there any natural languages that place the least significant digit first?

Specifically, consistently and with large numbers (i.e. not in compound words like "fourteen").

That's not a compound, at least not how you're thinking it is. Fourteen is from 'four-ten' (back in the Germanic days), not from 'four+teen[ager]'.
Even if it were, I can't see how it's not arbitrary to exclude 13-19.

No, not like that. I realise that it's four+ten. I meant to exclude the numeral words which, while originating from other numerals, have effectively become basic numerals themselves. A satisfying example (if it exists at all, of course) of a little-endian system would be something that represents 3425 as "5+20+400+300" (allowing of course for variation in bases and composition of the subunits of the number (like 300=500-200 or something)).

[prettydragoon]

On a related note, do any languages write the numbers smallest digit first, and if so, do they also say it that way?

The direction in which we write numbers was *kept* when they were borrowed from the Arabs, in spite of us and they writing in different directions. Thus, the arabic numbers originally were, and partially still are written with the smallest digit first.

And that came about because the Arabs kept the direction of writing numbers left-to-right when they borrowed the numbers from the Indians, who write left to right. So when you are writing in Arabic script, you are effectively writing smallest digit first.

[Mednij]

Apparently, Malagasy is consistently little-endian: http://www.sf.airnet.ne.jp/ts/language/ ... agasy.html

[Ser]

On a related note, do any languages write the numbers smallest digit first, and if so, do they also say it that way?

The direction in which we write numbers was *kept* when they were borrowed from the Arabs, in spite of us and they writing in different directions. Thus, the arabic numbers originally were, and partially still are written with the smallest digit first.

And that came about because the Arabs kept the direction of writing numbers left-to-right when they borrowed the numbers from the Indians, who write left to right. So when you are writing in Arabic script, you are effectively writing smallest digit first.

Numbers are written from left to right in handwritten Arabic, so no, you do write the smallest digit last.

[Qwynegold]

How do they know how much space to leave when writing big numbers?

[prettydragoon]

On a related note, do any languages write the numbers smallest digit first, and if so, do they also say it that way?

The direction in which we write numbers was *kept* when they were borrowed from the Arabs, in spite of us and they writing in different directions. Thus, the arabic numbers originally were, and partially still are written with the smallest digit first.

And that came about because the Arabs kept the direction of writing numbers left-to-right when they borrowed the numbers from the Indians, who write left to right. So when you are writing in Arabic script, you are effectively writing smallest digit first.

Numbers are written from left to right in handwritten Arabic, so no, you do write the smallest digit last.

Okay. I'm not surprised, since it seems to me that it would indeed be easiest to write down the digits in the order you say them in the language.

[din]

We don't, in Dutch. As I already said, we say 'drieënzestig" (three-and-sixty), but we still write it from left to right.

[Yng]

On a related note, do any languages write the numbers smallest digit first, and if so, do they also say it that way?

The direction in which we write numbers was *kept* when they were borrowed from the Arabs, in spite of us and they writing in different directions. Thus, the arabic numbers originally were, and partially still are written with the smallest digit first.

And that came about because the Arabs kept the direction of writing numbers left-to-right when they borrowed the numbers from the Indians, who write left to right. So when you are writing in Arabic script, you are effectively writing smallest digit first.

Numbers are written from left to right in handwritten Arabic, so no, you do write the smallest digit last.

Hmm, really? I remember reading something that said that historically Arabic numbers were read and said in rigid smallest-to-largest order, traces of which remain in the tens-units combinations (e.g. tisʿata ʿašara 'nineteen'). And I've definitely seen people writing them right-to-left, although maybe this is anomalous.