Search results
People also ask
Where did the word billion come from?
What does billion Mean?
How did a billion become a million?
Where did the word million come from?
Is billion a thousand times bigger than modern English?
When was billion formed?
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word billion was formed in the 16th century (from million and the prefix bi-, "two"), meaning the second power of a million (1,000,000 2 = 10 12). This long scale definition was similarly applied to trillion, quadrillion and so on.
Where does the word billion come from? Earliest known use. early 1600s. The earliest known use of the word billion is in the early 1600s. OED's earliest evidence for billion is from 1611, in the writing of Randle Cotgrave, lexicographer. billion is a borrowing from French. Etymons: French billion. See etymology. Nearby entries. billiken, n. 1914–.
Jul 13, 2024 · A word made necessary by the double meaning of billion. It became familiar in English in news coverage of the indemnity paid by France to Germany after the war of 1870-71.
The Romans, who were less interested in theoretical issues, expressed 1,000,000 as decies centena milia, that is, 'ten hundred thousand'; it was only in the 13th century that the (originally French) word 'million' was introduced.
Jan 23, 2009 · Historically, however, in the UK the term billion meant 1 million million – 1,000,000,000,000 – but in the United States the term was used to refer to 1 thousand million. The US value had, however, become increasingly used in Britain and the Prime Minister, Harold Wilson confirmed in a written reply in 1974 that the meaning of “billion ...
- Paul Bolton, Richard Cracknell
- 2009
Until the 1970s, when the United Kingdom officially adopted the American definition of billion, this word represented 10 12 in British English. This difference resulted from the emergence of two competing systems for naming large numbers.
Sep 26, 2024 · The Greek philosopher Nicomachus of Gerasa (flourished c. 100 ce), writing centuries after Pythagoras but clearly in his philosophical debt, stated that perfect numbers represented “virtues, wealth, moderation, propriety, and beauty.” (Some modern writers label such nonsense numerical theology.)
