Kaktovik numerals
base-20 system of digits used to write Iñupiaq numerals and numbers
The Kaktovik numerals or Kaktovik Iñupiaq numerals are a base-20 system of numerical digits created by Alaskan Iñupiat. They are visually iconic, with shapes that indicate the number being represented.
The Iñupiaq language has a base-20 numeral system, as do the other Eskimo–Aleut languages of Alaska and Canada (and formerly Greenland). Arabic numerals, which were designed for a base-10 system, are inadequate for Iñupiaq and other Inuit languages. To remedy this problem, students in Kaktovik, Alaska, invented a base-20 numeral notation in 1994, which has spread among the Alaskan Iñupiat and has been considered for use in Canada.
System
Iñupiaq, like other Inuit languages, has a base-20 counting system with a sub-base of 5 (a quinary-vigesimal system). That is, quantities are counted in scores (as in Welsh and French quatre-vingts 'eighty'), with intermediate numerals for 5, 10, and 15. Thus 78 is identified as three score fifteen-three.
The Kaktovik digits graphically reflect the lexical structure of the Iñupiaq numbering system.
Larger numbers are composed of these digits in a positional notation:
Values
In the following table are the decimal values of the Kaktovik digits up to three places to the left and to the right of the units' place.
“Kaktovik numerals” enters the record as base-20 system of digits used to write Iñupiaq numerals and numbers. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Kaktovik, numerals and base-20 can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Kaktovik numerals” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Kaktovik, numerals and base-20 provides the most credible route into that argument.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 13, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1065602. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1994.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Kaktovik numerals”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Kaktovik numerals primary sources, Kaktovik numerals archive and Kaktovik research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Kaktovik numerals”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Kaktovik numerals” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.