Greek Numerals: Letters, Chart 1 to 99 and Converter Table

Greek numerals write numbers with letters: α is 1, β is 2, ι is 10, κ is 20 and ρ is 100. A numeral ends with a small mark, the keraia (ʹ), so 24 is κδʹ (20 + 4). This alphabetic system was standard from the Hellenistic period and is still used in Greece today for ordinal numbers. Before it, Athens used the Attic signs, which are explained at the end.

The page gives the letters, a chart for 1 to 99 that works like a converter table, rules for thousands and big numbers, examples with years, and practice. For other systems see number systems, Roman numerals and Hindu-Arabic numerals, and for Greek mathematics the Greece section.

The Greek alphabetic numerals: letters and values

The first nine letters of the alphabet are 1 to 9, the next nine are 10 to 90 and the last nine are 100 to 900. The alphabet has only 24 letters, so three old letters fill the gaps: the digamma, which later became stigma, for 6, koppa for 90 and sampi for 900. A numeral has no place value and no zero; you simply add the letters.

The Greek alphabetic numerals: units, tens and hundreds
Letter	Value	Letter	Value	Letter	Value
α	1	ι	10	ρ	100
β	2	κ	20	σ	200
γ	3	λ	30	τ	300
δ	4	μ	40	υ	400
ε	5	ν	50	φ	500
ϛ	6	ξ	60	χ	600
ζ	7	ο	70	ψ	700
η	8	π	80	ω	800
θ	9	ϙ	90	ϡ	900

Greek numerals 1 to 99: converter table

To find a number, take the letter of the tens from the row and the letter of the ones from the column. The cell shows the numeral with its keraia. The first column (0) is the plain tens letter. For the ones alone use the first row.

Greek numerals 1 to 99: find the row for the tens, then the column for the ones
Tens	0	α	β	γ	δ	ε	ϛ	ζ	η	θ
0		αʹ	βʹ	γʹ	δʹ	εʹ	ϛʹ	ζʹ	ηʹ	θʹ
ι	ιʹ	ιαʹ	ιβʹ	ιγʹ	ιδʹ	ιεʹ	ιϛʹ	ιζʹ	ιηʹ	ιθʹ
κ	κʹ	καʹ	κβʹ	κγʹ	κδʹ	κεʹ	κϛʹ	κζʹ	κηʹ	κθʹ
λ	λʹ	λαʹ	λβʹ	λγʹ	λδʹ	λεʹ	λϛʹ	λζʹ	ληʹ	λθʹ
μ	μʹ	μαʹ	μβʹ	μγʹ	μδʹ	μεʹ	μϛʹ	μζʹ	μηʹ	μθʹ
ν	νʹ	ναʹ	νβʹ	νγʹ	νδʹ	νεʹ	νϛʹ	νζʹ	νηʹ	νθʹ
ξ	ξʹ	ξαʹ	ξβʹ	ξγʹ	ξδʹ	ξεʹ	ξϛʹ	ξζʹ	ξηʹ	ξθʹ
ο	οʹ	οαʹ	οβʹ	ογʹ	οδʹ	οεʹ	οϛʹ	οζʹ	οηʹ	οθʹ
π	πʹ	παʹ	πβʹ	πγʹ	πδʹ	πεʹ	πϛʹ	πζʹ	πηʹ	πθʹ
ϙ	ϙʹ	ϙαʹ	ϙβʹ	ϙγʹ	ϙδʹ	ϙεʹ	ϙϛʹ	ϙζʹ	ϙηʹ	ϙθʹ

Hundreds, thousands and years

Hundreds come first: 365 is τ (300) + ξ (60) + ε (5). Thousands use the unit letters with a small mark at the lower left, ͵α for 1,000 and ͵β for 2,000. Ten thousand was a myriad, written with an Μ and the number of myriads above it. Archimedes built on myriads in his Sand Reckoner to name numbers far larger than any earlier Greek system could, enough to count the grains of sand that would fill the universe (by his estimate about 10⁶³).

Examples
Number	Greek numeral
24	κδʹ
99	ϙθʹ
365	τξεʹ
1,453	͵αυνγʹ
1,996	͵αϡϙϛʹ
2,026	͵βκϛʹ

Attic numerals: the older Greek signs

Athens first used the Attic or acrophonic numerals, signs taken from the first letter of the number word. They are probably as old as the 7th century BC and are attested from 454 to 95 BC. The system is additive, like Roman numerals. A sign is repeated up to four times, and 50, 500, 5,000 and 50,000 are Π with a small Δ, Η, Χ or Μ inside it.

Attic (acrophonic) numerals
Sign	Value	From the word
Ι	1	a stroke
Π	5	pente, five
Δ	10	deka, ten
Η	100	hekaton, hundred
Χ	1,000	chilioi, thousand
Μ	10,000	myrioi, ten thousand

So 6 is ΠΙ, 38 is ΔΔΔΠΙΙΙ and 2,026 is ΧΧΔΔΠΙ (Χ Χ for 2,000, Δ Δ for 20, Π Ι for 6).

When were the alphabetic numerals used?

The alphabetic system probably arose near Miletus. It is attested in the 5th century BC at the latest and spread in the Hellenistic world from about 200 BC. Athens adopted the Milesian alphabet in 402 BC but kept its Attic numerals for a long time and used the letter numerals fully by about 50 AD. Today Greek uses ordinary digits for amounts and these numerals for ordinals, as in Philip II, Φίλιππος Βʹ.

Practice problems with answers

Frequently asked questions

What are the Greek numerals?

Letters used as numbers: alpha to theta for 1 to 9, iota to koppa for 10 to 90 and rho to sampi for 100 to 900. See the letters.

Is there a Greek numerals converter?

The table for 1 to 99 and the rules for hundreds and thousands work as a converter: look up the tens and ones, add the hundreds in front, and use the lower-left mark for thousands.

Did the Greeks have a zero?

Not in the numerals above. Astronomers such as Ptolemy used a sign for an empty place in their sexagesimal tables, but there was no zero digit in everyday numbers.

What is the difference between Attic and alphabetic numerals?

Attic numerals use a few signs added together, like Roman numerals. Alphabetic numerals use one letter for each unit, ten and hundred. See Attic numerals.