Download This PaperBinding the Lion: Numerology in the Mandaean Tradition
Origins and Applications of Language, ed. Samuel Zinner and Aria Razfar (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield); Forth.
9 Pages Posted: 13 Jul 2023 Last revised: 15 Jul 2023
Date Written: May 13, 2022
Abstract
Mandaeans employ two systems for representing numerals: the familiar decimal system in numeration, and a duodecimal system for number notation by means of 22 letters of the Mandaic alphabet. This latter system is used exclusively for the purpose of numerology (Mandaic gmaṭ aria, ultimately from Greek geōmetríā). Significantly, its notation is traditionally organized in the form of an alphasyllabary, each character representing a mora rather than the individual characters of the alphabet. Although the notation system is functionally duodecimal, its relationship to other regional alphabetic numeral systems is illustrated by the characters denoting decades and centuries rather than dozens and grosses. Prior to Stefana Drower’s translation of the Book of the Zodiac (1949), almost nothing had been published concerning Mandaean numerology, and little has been contributed to its study over the intervening years. This contribution illustrates both the form and functions of this unique notation system and suggests a possible context for its adoption.
Keywords: Numerology, Isopsephy, Mandaic, duodecimal notation, number syllabaries
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