Learning to count auf Deutsch

Me, trying to figure out German numbers above 20

Recently, I walked by the elementary school near our apartment and heard a class singing a counting song. 

“Siebenunddreißig, achtunddreißig, neununddreißig, vierzig!” (“Seven-and-thirty, eight-and-thirty, nine-and-thirty, forty!”)

My train of thought skipped when those kids sang, “Forty,” because I was still on “eight-and-thirty.” They sang, “Forty,” and I realized I expected them to sing “ninety.” I heard “eight-and-thirty” and pictured the number 83, not 38. Logically, we shouldn’t have gotten to 90 so shortly after 83, but nonetheless, forty surprised me. 

Even in English, I transpose numbers. I grew up with Swiss German, but numbers beyond 20 require extra thought, because between 20-99, the first number you hear doesn’t take the tens place. 

If someone tells me their phone number in any way besides one numeral at a time, my brain short-circuits, not only because I have to remember that 8-and-30 is 38, but also because the format is different. I’m used to hearing a telephone number as 202-555-55 55. The cadence and format in German are different. Luckily, the sharing of phone numbers has mostly transpired over email.

Beyond the basic number struggle, I’ve noticed how much math and conversion I’m doing. Not francs to dollars, but everywhere else.

Besides counting, which you learn by singing a song in kindergarten, there’s time; you know, a stereotypical aspect of Swiss life, what with the watches and punctuality. I learned the 24-hour clock a while ago, so 20:00, 18:30, all good. Quarter hours are also straightforward. 2:15 p.m. is quarter after 14 hours. 7:45 a.m. is quarter before 8. 

But the half hour? Half 10. Do you think that means 10:30? It means 9:30. If that makes sense to you, you’re ready for German and life in Switzerland. And Germany. Not sure what they’re doing in Austria. 

Then there’s time zone math. Switzerland is a convenient six hours ahead of all my Eastern time zone friends, which is easy to picture on a clock.¹ I’m still working part-time at my U.S. job and regularly have to do this math. Notes on my calendar look like, “Work: 9-12; 15-18” so I can send my U.S. schedule to my colleagues and also remind myself what local time I’m working. Of course then I look at the notes and think I’m working the full day; putting “ET” and “CET” after might help. 

Finally, to help my integration, I switched my weather app from Fahrenheit to Celcius. This after I said it was 78 degrees to a British woman and she replied, “What’s that in real money?” 

I switch back a few times a week to check if my conversion guesses are close. I have some good reminders to help myself here: zero is freezing, 37 is about 98.6. My father-in-law taught us a handy rhyme: “Thirty is hot, twenty is nice, ten is cool, zero is ice.” That will have to do, as trying to use the formula to convert between Fahrenheit and celsius takes me so long, the temperature will have changed by the time I’ve solved it. 

All of this is part of integration and learning a new language. The German three-and-eighty for 83 is still less math than the French equivalent: four twenties three (quatre-vingt-trois). While bemoaning all the math in numbers in different languages to an Italian Frenchman, he pointed out that when you grow up in a language you’re not doing math. You just hear “four twenties three” and know it’s 83. I don’t know if I’ll ever stop hearing eight-and-thirty and quickly realize “38.” In the meantime, I’m practicing the kindergarteners’ song.

Today in Swiss German French

Hooray for whichever Swiss French decided, “NON, we refuse to do this math with our numbers” and threw out sixty ten (70), four twenties (80), and four twenties ten (90). Instead, the Swiss French have septante, huitante, nonante, which are, roughly, seven-ante, eight-ante, and nine-ante. Just a little less work to do when you’re already stressed about speaking a new language.

1. *Yes, I’m picturing a clock and adding or subtracting six hours. This entire post is making me wonder if I’m dyslexic.