How would you write out 1 to 2000 in Roman numerals in the same way as the ancient Romans did and not in todays notation of them?

Answer 1

Notwithstanding todays modern configuration of Roman numerals inasmuch that there is substancial evidence to qualify the fact that the ancient Romans would have worked out the equivalent of 1 to 2000 on an abacus counting device as follows:-

1 to 9: I, II, III, IIII, V, VI, VII, VIII and VIIII

10 to 90: X, XX, XXX, XXXX, L, LX, LXX, LXXX and LXXXX

100 to 900: C, CC, CCC, CCCC, D, DC, DCC, DCCC and DCCCC

1000 and 2000: M and MM

To select any numerals simply write them out in descending order as in the examples: 1776 = MDCCLXXVI and 1666 = MDCLXVI

Note that sometimes it's possible to abridge numerals thus using less numerals but of equal value as the following examples show:-

4 = IIII => IV (5-1)

9 = VIIII => IX (10-1)

19 = XVIIII => IXX (20-1)

49 = XXXXVIIII => IL (50-1)

1999 = MDCCCCLXXXXVIIII => IMM (2000-1)

The way we write out Roman numerals today is because the real rules governing the Roman numeral system were changed in the Middle Ages presumably to make Roman numerals more compatible with Hindu-Arabic numerals that were being intoduced into Western Europe at the time.

QED by David Gambell