The German numbers until 20 are not much of a challenge usually but from 20 onwards the German language shows some peculiar behavior. Arte illustrates that lovely in the video above and in the next lecture you'll practice the tenner numbers sufficiently so that they become second nature soon. Do you have anything unusual in the way you count in your native language? Share it with us in the comments below or in the Community.

Video Summary

• Germans have complex sentence structures with verbs at the end, requiring them to mentally store long clauses before understanding the sentence.
• They also pronounce numbers in a unique way, saying the ones place before the tens place.
• Most languages pronounce numbers in order, but some North Indian, Czech, Dutch, and Arabic languages share this German numbering style.
• This German numbering system can lead to errors in mental calculations, banking, and accounting.
• Numbers under 20 are pronounced with the tens place first, e.g., "zwölf" for twelve, which is "zwei und zehn" (two and ten).
• The Arabic numeral system, introduced to Europe during the Crusades, allowed for flexible positioning of digits, enabling complex arithmetic.
• The pronunciation and written form of numbers were not initially standardized in Europe; even Shakespeare and mathematicians like Adam Ries used different conventions.
• Eventually, a consensus emerged to match pronunciation to the written form, except in Germany.
• In 1951, Norway officially abandoned the German numbering system, but Denmark and the Czech Republic still allow both pronunciations.
• A group called "20 1" advocates for dual number pronunciations in Germany, but resistance to change is strong due to sentimental attachment to the traditional system.