Chapter 22 - Numbers

 1. NUMBERS FROM 1 TO 20 : 

Numbers in Swahili behave like adjectives, and like all adjectives, they are placed after the noun, but before the demonstrative. One characteristic of the numbers is that some of them are invariable while others are concordant. Thus :

Numbers 6, 7, 9, 10, 20 are invariable and do not take class prefixes.

Numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 agree with the noun and take a class prefix.

EXAMPLES :

1	Mtoto mmoja	One child
1	Mkate mmoja	One bread
1	Tunda moja	One fruit
1	Nguo moja	One cloth
1	Kijiko kimoja	One spoon
3	Miaka mitatu	Three years
6	Matunda sita	Six fruits
8	Matunda manane	Eight fruits
8	Watu wanane	Eight people
11	Vijiko kumi na kimoja	Eleven spoons
12	Vijiko kumi na viwili	Twelve spoons
13	Matunda kumi na matatu	Thirteen fruits
14	Miti kumi na minne	Fourteen trees
18	Watu kumi na wanane	Eighteen people
25	Watu ishirini na watano	Twenty-five people

 2. TENS : 

When a ten is followed by a unit, the unit is introduced by the word NA = and.

EXAMPLES :

21	Watoto ishirini na mmoja	Twenty-one children
34	Watu thelathini na wanne	Thirty-four people
61	Viti sitini na kimoja	Sixty-one chairs
78	Viti sabini na vinane	Seventy-eight chairs

 3. HUNDREDS : 

When a hundred is followed by tens and units, we use the word NA (= and), but only once, between the last two numbers.

EXAMPLES :

101	Mia na moja
110	Mia na kumi
111	Mia kumi na moja
308	Mia tatu na nane
328	Mia tatu ishirini na nane

 4. THOUSANDS : 

In numbers containing thousands, the word NA introduces the tens or the units, but it is never used between the thousands and the hundreds.

EXAMPLES :

1001	Elfu moja na moja
1600	Elfu moja mia sita
1735	Elfu moja mia saba thelathini na tano
4352	Elfu nne mia tatu hamsini na mbili
4500	Elfu nne mia tano
7800	Elfu saba mia nane
8903	Elfu nane mia tisa na tatu

 5. TENS OF THOUSANDS : 

When handling numbers with tens of thousands, some care must be taken to avoid confusions. For example :

Number 15.000 should read : Elfu kumi na tano, which can also be interpreted as : 1015 !

Thus, to avoid any risk of confusion, the word elfu will be placed AFTER the number that quantifies it, and the number will read : 15.000 = Kumi na tano elfu.

This rule must be observed every time the tens of thousands are not followed by any other number.

EXAMPLES :

16.000	Kumi na sita elfu
30.000	Thelathini elfu
48.000	Arobaini na nane elfu

On the other hand, when the tens of thousands are followed by hundreds, tens, or units, there is no such risk of confusion, and the words retain their normal order.

EXAMPLES :

16.030	Elfu kumi na sita na thelatini
30.200	Elfu thelathini mia mbili
48.025	Elfu arobaini na nane ishirini na tano

 6. FRACTIONS : 

 7. DECIMALS : 

The figure "zero" is : SIFURI.
The word "point" is : NUKTA or POINTI.

Decimal numbers are read in Swahili as in English, i.e. by separating each figure after the point.

EXAMPLES :

0.5	Sifuri nukta tano
10.25	Kumi nukta mbili, tano
20.125	Ishirini nukta moja, mbili, tano

 8. ORDINAL NUMBERS : 

VOCABULARY

EXERCISES

EXERCISE 1 : Write these numbers in letters in Swahili :

0 ;    9 ;    22;    31 ;    89 ;    93 ;    157 ;    235 ;    695 ;    762 ;    1049 ;    2203 ;    7.000 ;    10.056 ;    10.914 ;    14.000 ;    14.005 ;    134.000 ;    300.000 ;    752.326 .

EXERCISE 2 : Write these numbers in figures :

Kumi na tano ; kumi na tisa ; ishirini na saba ; thelathini na moja ; arobaini na nne ; hamsini na nane ; sabini na tatu ; themanini na tano ; mia mbili ; mia nne ; mia saba ; mia tatu kumi na sita ; elfu tano ; elfu kumi ; elfu kumi na mbili mia tano sabini na nne ; kumi na tano elfu ; arobaini na mbili elfu ; laki moja ; laki saba ; milioni mbili.

EXERCICE 3 : Translate into Swahili, writing the numbers in letters :

12 cups ; 30 trees ; 11 chairs ; 24 years ; 3 children ; 2 dogs ; 3 cats ; 10 cows ; 115 islands ; 21 people ; 4 fruits ; 8 oranges ; 4 spoons ; 12 houses ; 3 young people ; 14 lessons ; 18 animals ; 4 bananas ; 225 pupils ; 22 teachers.