![\"Amager](\"http:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Amager_Strandpark_-_kite_surfers.jpg\")
<\/a>If the water\u2019s too cold, do it the Danish way: Count TI - TYVE - TREDIVE - FYRRE - HALVTREDS - TRES - HALVFJERDS - FIRS - HALVFEMS - and at HUNDREDE you dive!<\/p><\/div>Trouble falling asleep? Counting f\u00e5r<\/strong> (sheep) in Danish might just do the trick! For one thing, the Danish words for 50, 60, 70, 80 and 90 are much less transparent than the fif-ty<\/em>, six-ty<\/em>, seven-ty<\/em>, eigh-ty<\/em>, nine-ty<\/em> row of English \u2013 and so it goes when comparing them with a lot of other languages too. Norwegians and Swedes on holiday in Denmark always mess things up, creating on-the-fly numerals like \u201dfems\u201d and \u201dhalvfirs\u201d. Don\u2019t you listen to them! It\u2019s actually quite easy when you get down to it:<\/p>\n 50 \u2013 halvtreds<\/strong><\/p>\n 60 \u2013 tres<\/strong><\/p>\n 70 \u2013 halvfjerds<\/strong><\/p>\n 80 \u2013 firs<\/strong><\/p>\n 90 \u2013 halvfems<\/strong><\/p>\n The halv-<\/strong> part means\u2013you guessed it\u2013half<\/em>. As usual, there\u2019s a historical explanation lurking in the mist\u2026 The modern words are actually shortened from older Danish<\/p>\n halv tredje sinds tyve = half(way to the) third times twenty = 2.5 \u00d7 20 = 50 <\/em><\/p>\n tre sinds tyve = three times twenty = 3 \u00d7 20 = 60 <\/em><\/p>\n halv fjerde sinds tyve = half(way to the) fourth times twenty = 3.5 \u00d7 20 = 70 <\/em><\/p>\n fire sinds tyve = four times twenty = 4 \u00d7 20 = 80 <\/em><\/p>\n halv femte sinds tyve = half(way to the) fifth times twenty = 4.5 \u00d7 20 = 90<\/em><\/p>\n Makes sense? \ud83d\ude42 Most Danes are not aware of this either, and happily go on counting without giving the etymology much thought. It is, however, revealed whenever you want to say that something is the 50th, 60th \u2026 of something:<\/p>\n den halvtredsindstyvende, tresindstyvende, halvfjerdsindstyvende, firsindstyvende, halvfemsindstyvene \u00f8l<\/strong>\u00a0\u2019the 50th, 60th, 70th, 80th, 90th beer\u2019<\/p>\n (I doubt you\u2019ll get to the 90th beer, though!) By the way, the word sinds<\/em> is not used in modern Danish. (Only as a part of nogensinde<\/strong> \u2019ever\u2019. Some young folks even use the English word ever<\/strong>. Whatever.) 4 \u00d7 20 in the modern language is 4 gange 20<\/strong>.<\/p>\n And oh, in Danish you say\u00a0\u201dtwo and forty\u201d rather than fourty-two<\/em>!<\/p>\n 0 nul<\/p>\n 1 et (\u00e9n)<\/p>\n 2 to<\/p>\n 3 tre<\/p>\n 4 fire<\/p>\n 5 fem<\/p>\n 6 seks<\/p>\n 7 syv<\/p>\n 8 otte<\/p>\n 9 ni<\/p>\n 10 ti<\/p>\n 11 elleve<\/p>\n 12 tolv<\/p>\n 13 tretten<\/p>\n 14 fjorten<\/p>\n 15 femten<\/p>\n 16 seksten<\/p>\n 17 sytten<\/p>\n 18 atten<\/p>\n 19 nitten<\/p>\n 20 tyve<\/p>\n 21 enogtyve (en og tyve)<\/p>\n 22 toogtyve<\/p>\n 23 treogtyve<\/p>\n 24 fireogtyve<\/p>\n 25 femogtyve<\/p>\n 26 seksogtyve<\/p>\n 27 syvogtyve<\/p>\n 28 otteogtyve<\/p>\n 29 niogtyve<\/p>\n 30 tredive<\/p>\n 31 enogtredive<\/p>\n 32 toogtredive<\/p>\n 33 treogtredive \u2026<\/p>\n 40 fyrre<\/p>\n 50 halvtreds<\/p>\n 60 tres<\/p>\n 70 halvfjerds<\/p>\n 80 firs<\/p>\n 90 halvfems<\/p>\n 100 hundrede<\/p>\n 101 hundrede et<\/p>\n 102 hundrede to<\/p>\n 247 to hundrede syvogfyrre<\/p>\n 500 fem hundrede<\/p>\n 1000 tusind<\/p>\n 2001 to tusind og et<\/p>\n 1 000.000 en million<\/p>\n 7 000.000 syv millioner<\/p>\n 1 000.000.000 en milliard<\/p>\n 10 000.000.000 ti milliarder<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Trouble falling asleep? Counting f\u00e5r (sheep) in Danish might just do the trick! For one thing, the Danish words for 50, 60, 70, 80 and 90 are much less transparent than the fif-ty, six-ty, seven-ty, eigh-ty, nine-ty row of English \u2013 and so it goes when comparing them with a lot of other languages too…<\/p>\nNow, let\u2019s count:<\/h3>\n