And for those who have not read the wonderful "Vish Puri" mystery novels by Tarquin Hall, a "lakh" = 100,000. John Bear Former Research Director, Bell & Howell Education Group
Right, John. And a "crore" = 10,000,000 And one "arab" = 100,000,000, one "padma" = 1,000,000,000,000,000 and one "shankh" = 100,000,000,000,000,000 I've never read the novels. However, the average Maharajah who can count his own wealth knows this stuff cold. :smile: J.
Plus, I believe investigators needed these huge numbers to count the fake diplomas (and the profits) at Axact. :smile: This number system is used in most parts of India and in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal as well. Its history dates back to Vedic times; these - and even larger - numbers have been around in Sanskrit equivalents since the second millennium BCE. I'm impressed with the long history of Indian math and science. I should take time to learn more about it. Interesting Indian (and other) history of large numbers, here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_large_numbers J
I first came across the terms "lakh" and "crore" several years ago. I was reading about the Indian-made Tata Nano, one of the world's most Spartan cars. It was described as "The one-lakh car," as it sold for 100,000 rupees. That's only $1,554 US these days, but I hear the price has gone up. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tata_Nano J
I've seen friends and colleagues use lakh and crore, but not the others, which I think have fallen out of use there.
Same here, Steve. Lots of lakh and crore, but I've never seen the others used, either - except in articles about the number system. J.
