Counting in Volapük

Language overview

Forty-two in Volapük Volapük, from vol (world) and pük (language), is a constructed language, and more specifically an international auxiliary language, created in 1879 by Johann Martin Schleyer, in Germany.

Volapük numbers list

  • 1 – bal
  • 2 – tel
  • 3 – kil
  • 4 – fol
  • 5 – lul
  • 6 – mäl
  • 7 – vel
  • 8 – jöl
  • 9 – zül
  • 10 – deg
  • 11 – deg bal
  • 12 – deg tel
  • 13 – deg kil
  • 14 – deg fol
  • 15 – deg lul
  • 16 – deg mäl
  • 17 – deg vel
  • 18 – deg jöl
  • 19 – deg zül
  • 20 – teldeg
  • 30 – kildeg
  • 40 – foldeg
  • 50 – luldeg
  • 60 – mäldeg
  • 70 – veldeg
  • 80 – jöldeg
  • 90 – züldeg
  • 100 – tum
  • 1,000 – mil
  • one million – balion
  • one trillion – telion
  • one quintillion – kilion

Volapük numbering rules

Now that you’ve had a gist of the most useful numbers, let’s move to the writing rules for the tens, the compound numbers, and why not the hundreds, the thousands and beyond (if possible).

  • Digits from zero to nine are rendered by specific words: ser [0], bal [1], tel [2], kil [3], fol [4], lul [5], mäl [6], vel [7], jöl [8], and zül [9].
  • The tens are formed by prefixing the word for ten (deg) with its multiplier digit, except for ten itself: deg [10], teldeg [20], kildeg [30], foldeg [40], luldeg [50], mäldeg [60], veldeg [70], jöldeg [80], and züldeg [90].
  • The hundreds are formed like the tens, i.e. by prefixing the word for hundred (tum) with its multiplier digit, except for one hundred itself: tum [100], teltum [200], kiltum [300], foltum [400]…
  • The thousands are formed like the tens and the hundreds, i.e. by prefixing the word for thousand (mil) with its multiplier digit, except for one thousand itself: mil [1,000], telmil [2,000], kilmil [3,000], folmil [4,000]…
  • Compound numbers are formed by stating the biggest number first, and going down the scale to the lower, separating them by a space (e.g.: deg tel [12], foltum luldeg mäl [456], telmil kiltum teldeg lul [2,325]).
  • Higher scale numbers follow the long scale numbers rule in which every new term greater than one million is one million times the previous term: balion [1 million] (106), telion [1 trillion] (1012), kilion [1 quintillion] (1018).

Write a number in full in Volapük

Let’s move now to the practice of the numbering rules in Volapük. Will you guess how to write a number in full? Enter a number and try to write it down in your head, or maybe on a piece of paper, before displaying the result.

Books

Grammar of Volapük Grammar of Volapük
by , editors Nabu Press (2010)
[Amazon.com Amazon.com]

Comprehensive Volapük Grammar Comprehensive Volapük Grammar
by , editors BiblioLife (2009)
[Amazon.com Amazon.com]

Articles

International Auxiliary Languages and Wikipedia International Auxiliary Languages and Wikipedia

International Auxiliary Languages have found on Wikipedia a new space to expand their reach. If Esperanto and Volapük are the most used IAL, Ido, Interlingua, Interlingue, and Novial are also present in the picture. Let’s see their publication rate over the years to get a better feeling of their progression.

Auxiliary languages

Afrihili, Ba kom, Babm, Bolak, Ceqli, Digisk Folkspraak, Esperanto, Folkspraak, Globasa, Glosa, Guosa, Idiom neutral, Ido, Intal, Interlingua, Interlingue, Interslavic, Kotava, Langue nouvelle, Latinesce, Latino sine flexione, Lingua Franca Nova, Lingwa de planeta, Mondial, Mondlango, Neolatin, Nove Latina, Pandunia, Panglobish, Ro, Romanid, Slovio, Solresol, Sona, Spokil, Stœchiophonie, Tutonish, Universalglot, Uropi, and Volapük.

Other supported languages

As the other currently supported languages are too numerous to list extensively here, please select a language from the full list of supported languages.