중세 프랑스어 기수법 체계 연구

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to explain the process of change in the numbering system in Modern French: from the Latin notation or a decimal notation to a mixed system of decimal and vigesimal. To achieve this, the paper examines the cardinal numbers and the ordinal numbers in Medieval French which represent the middle ground between Latin and Modern French. Latin numbering system is entirely based on the decimal system, and the numbers 11-99 are expressed by addition and subtraction: 11=10+1, 18=20-2, 19=20-1, etc. The numbers over 100 are formed by adding the indicated number to the sum suggested as in French. In Medieval French, nominations for 1-16 came from Vulgar Latin which also introduced the notion of the number 0, while nominations for 17-19 were newly formed using the addition process. The biggest difference of the numbering system between Medieval French and Latin is the mixture of the decimal and the vigesimal in ten digits. The introduction of numbering system based on different logic, that is decimal and vigesimal, led to a confused, incoherent numbering system that we find in Modern French: nominations for 20-69 are decimal, those of 80-99 vigesimal while 70-79 show mixture of both system. The ordinal, however based on the new cardinal system, has been formed using french suffixes: -ier (premier) and -ième (deuxième, troisième, etc.).