Arabic numerals

The ten Arabic numerals (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) are the most commonly used symbols for writing numbers. The term often also implies a positional notation number with a decimal base, in particular when contrasted with Roman numerals. However the symbols are also used to write numbers in other bases, such as octal, as well as non-numerical information such as trademarks or license plate identifiers.

They are also called Western Arabic numerals, Western digits, European digits,^[1] Ghubār numerals, or Hindu–Arabic numerals^[2] due to positional notation (but not these digits) originating in India. The Oxford English Dictionary uses lowercase Arabic numerals while using the fully capitalized term Arabic Numerals for Eastern Arabic numerals.^[3] In contemporary society, the terms digits, numbers, and numerals often implies only these symbols, although it can only be inferred from context.

Europeans first learned of Arabic numerals c. the 10th century, though their spread was a gradual process. After Italian scholar Fibonacci of Pisa encountered the numerals in the Algerian city of Béjaïa, his 13th-century work Liber Abaci became crucial in making them known in Europe. However, their use was largely confined to Northern Italy until the invention of the printing press in the 15th century.^[4] European trade, books, and colonialism subsequently helped popularize the adoption of Arabic numerals around the world. The numerals are used worldwide—significantly beyond the contemporary spread of the Latin alphabet—and have become common in the writing systems where other numeral systems existed previously, such as Chinese and Japanese numerals.