Re: [HM] Indian numbers

Prof. Lueneburg (luene@mathematik.uni-kl.de)
Tue, 13 Apr 1999 14:37:01 +0200 (MESZ)

>
> During my recent visit to India, I learned that when writing about large
> numbers, say in newspaper reports on the budget, they don't use
> "million", but rather two other numbers: Lakh, which is a hundred
> thousand, and Crore, which is a hundred lakhs. Does anybody know the
> history of these units?
> Avinoam Mann
>

"Laksha" is sanscrit meaning 100 000. The word "lacquer" (Lack in German) stems
from this word, since huge numbers of "lacquer" lice sit on the "lacquer" tree
producing what is now called "lacquer". The word came through the Arabs into
mediavel latin and from there into all the European languages.

My source: Edith M. H. Straesser, Lackkunst. In: Reclams Handbuch der
kuenstlerischen Techniken. Vol. 3. Stuttgart 1986. pp. 211-293. Here p. 217.

Straesser does not give a source.

The word "lac" meaning the varnish is also in Fibonacci's liber abbaci,
page 180 in the Boncompagni edition.

That's all I know about Laksha.

Heinz Lueneburg