How To Learn Chinese Numbers zero and 1-10: Elizabeth II, WWII, Sixth Avenue, Henry VIII

Problems
Why do we need numbers? We need them when shopping. We need to read prices in the supermarket or market, read the signs, understand when the price is said.

We see Roman signs a lot in English. Queen Elizabeth 1. Queen Elizabeth II. In the newspaper we read about Queen Elizabeth II. In the history books we read about Henry VIII, and in the art galleries. At the theatre we see Shakespeare's plays Henry IV and Henry V.

I tried Google Translate. Then I tried asking on Facebook where I have lots of Chinese speaking friends from Toastmasters International clubs in Singapore.

Two is a double horizontal line. Here the top line is slightly smaller than the lower line.

英国女王伊丽莎白二世

Queen of England 英国女王
Elizabeth 伊丽莎白
THE 2ND 二世


We slso have the Arabic numerals on calendars and car number plates.

In Chinese the numbers are on calendars in hotels and restaurants. If you've forgotten the date, in China you can check with their calendar. What if it's wrong? You might even spot the calendar is wrong and tell somebody.

Here's a Chinese calendar for 2017 from Wikipedia. After learning the numbers 1-10, you can start to recognize some numbers. Looking at a calendar, you realise it would be helpful to know the numbers 1-31 in any language you are learning, as well as the year.

The Chinese also use numbers in names. Number one son.

Streets are named with dates and numbers. In Singapore there's an MRT station called Sixth Avenue. I recognised the number six on the station platform. You could do the same.

1 I learned the numbers using Duolingo. I learned them years ago, went back, and I'd forgotten them.
2 I couldn't tell the differentce bewetween the sound for four and ten.
3 I couldn't work out which number was yuan.
4 The numbers seven and nine looked the same.
5 Duolingo doesn't teach the numbers in order, but randomly.
6 On Duolingo I assumed all the numbers were one to ten. I didn't realise they included zero.

I shall look at the numbers in order, starting with the easy ones.
For reference, here's what Wikipedia says:

 Listen to audio (help·info)

• 0: 〇 (零)： líng
• 1: 一 (壹) yī
• 2: 二 (Traditional:貳) èr
• 3: 三 (Traditional:參) sān
• 4: 四 (肆) sì
• 5: 五 (伍) wǔ
• 6: 六 (Traditional:陸) liù
• 7: 七 (柒) qī
• 8: 八 (捌) bā
• 9: 九 (玖) jiǔ
• 10: 十 (拾) shí
• 100: 百 (佰) bǎi
• 1,000: 千 (仟) qiān
• 10,000: 万 (萬) wàn (1'0000)
• 100,000: 十万 (萬) shíwàn (10'0000)
• 1,000,000: 一百万 (萬) yībǎi wàn (100'0000)
• 100,000,000: Traditional 一亿 (億) yīyì (1'0000'0000)
• 1,000,000,000,000: 一兆 yīzhào (1'0000'0000'0000)

The symbols in brackets are the complex and formal forms, which are used mainly in notarized, official documents, and when writing checks. An exception is zero; the complex form is much more widely used than a casual circle. The complex forms are known in English as banker's anti-fraud numerals, in Chinese as 大寫 dàxiě (which is the same term for "capital letter"). They are necessary because, since normal Chinese characters are so simple, a forger could easily change 三十 to 五千 with just three strokes. See Standard numbers for more information.

This time I shall start with zero because that is in the Duolingo lessons.

ZERO

Zero visual Chinese writing symbol

Zero, surprisingly, is not simple, like the zero we use, a simple circle, just the opposite, lots of little lines. My memory aid is: I have zero time to learn all those lines! 

Zero sound

The word is ling. You would have to linger longer to learn to write that. But I have zero time. Ting-a-ling, open the cash register. I, the cashier, counted the money and you now owe me zero so I'll open the cash register, ting-a-LING!

ONE to THREE in Chinese Characters - Visuals

One to three or one, two, three.  What a funny pun.

One is easy, one horizontal line. It's like the Roman one, fallen over like a tombstone because it is so old.

Two is similarly two horizontal lines. Like the roman two but sideways.

Three is similarly three horizontal lines. Like the Roman three but sideways.

One to three in Chinese - the sounds.

ee er san

One to three - The Spelling

Yi but a silent y.

Ten looks like a Roman ten which is an X but topped over like a T with a spike on top. think of it as a cross or a plus sign. Plus ten.

Now, where can you test yourself?

USEFUL WEBSITES
https://tinycards.duolingo.com/decks/2JvHmk3/chinese-numbers

Video starting with zero
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ow3SXtz5i4

Author, Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

Mural on Sixth Avenue Station

I love this mural on Sixth Avenue station concourse on the Downtown line in Singapore. The mural is very Chinese with its green dancing dragon and pleasing pyramid roof pagoda.

The station is strangely named. Above is Fourth Avenue. It is not the sixth station on the downtown line but DT7 (down town 7). Nonetheless, useful station, and jolly mural.

Author, Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Learning Chinese, Japanese and Malay From Railway Station Signs: 6th Avenue!

Picture from Wikipedia showing numbers in various languages. (English, Urdu, Roman, ending with Chinese / Japanese.)

Look at the numbers in the bottom line of the picture. They are Chinese signs for zero, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine. Six looks like a standing or seated man: head, two arms, two legs, invisible pavement or invisible seat.

Problem
How do you learn and practise a language every day, effortlessly?

Answer
Learn to recognize station signs. You see them every day as you pass.  Learn Chinese signs and you have also learned Japanese. The reverse benefit applies. Learn Japanese signs and you have also learned Chinese!

Railway Station - Botanical Gardens
For example. I was sitting at the Singapore station Botanical Gardens which is a point of interchange from the blue Downtown line. I looked at the three Chinese signs for Botanical Gardens and said to my companion: "I wonder which of those signs means garden?"

Translating Photos And Text
We took a photo of the sign with our phones. However, you cannot put a sign into Google translate. So we tried the other way round. We could not type in the word garden in Chinese. So we typed in Garden, in English, and looked to see if we had a match with the word which came up and our photo.

Sixth Avenue
Another stop on the Downtown line is Sixth Avenue. I was looking at the English words Sixth Avenue when the Chinese signs alongside jumped out at me.

Hey - the middle of the three signs is a number I recognize! I learned the numbers one to ten last week. That's the number six!

It's not where I would expect it. The number six is the middle of three signs. It so happens that six is one of the Chinese numbers I found hardest to remember. One, two, and three, are easy to remember because they are simply horizontal lines, one line for one, two lines for two, three lines for three. Four is a square with two curves inside like a curtained window. But six bears no relations to anything.

However, now I shall be able to remember six easily. From just once glance at it on the railway station the number six is instantly ingrained in my memory. It will be reinforced every time I pass through that station. The sign shows a man on Sixth Avenue station standing or sitting waiting for the train.

You are likely to see Chinese signs if you live in or holiday in Singapore, Hong Kong, or China. You will also see signs on Chinese restaurants in Chinatown in large cities. More are in any country with borders with China or large numbers of Chinese investors or visitors. I saw signs in Cambodia, which has a lot of investment from China in Siem Reap, the city around the temples of which the famous one is Ankor Wat, Wat meaning temple.

Happy hunting with Chinese and Malay and French and other signs.

In Singapore I was a volunteer at an English enrichment programme at Crescent Girls' School. We helped girls who had failed mock O level to pass the exam. They all passed (except one who was in hospital).

Every day I receive reminders from Duolingo and Duolingo Tiny Cards to keep up my Chinese. Even if I did not use their system (and I do use it every day) the daily reminders would be invaluable.

Happy learning. Thank you (for reading). 'Shay shay', which means thank you in Chinese, is what I hear on every train journey at the end of Chinese announcement. I also hear the Malay ones ending Terimah Kasih (thank you in Malay) and 'Mandri' (thank you in Tamil).

But my top triumph is spotting the number six in the sign for Sixth Avenue.

 Multilingual signs everywhere.

Multi-lingual signs on trains - and local people will help you to translate.

Stations and bus stops - whilst waiting around, time to learn languages.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker, teacher of English and other languages.