Tallying

Tallying is an ancient method of recording and counting used before the development of written numerals. Early humans would use simple marks or notches to track quantities such as inventory or debts.

Summary

• Initial systems lacked a symbol for zero.
• Mathematics was primarily concerned with existing items, making tallying sufficient.

Related Concepts

• simple-math-systems
• development-of-numerals

New Information

• The number 0 was banned in the Western world for over 1500 years due to philosophical resistance and religious objections. Early societies using tallying had no need for a concept of zero.
• In contrast, Eastern cultures readily accepted and incorporated zero into their mathematical systems.

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