Numbers

1. てぃーち、たーち、みーち

   Tii-chi, taa-chi, mii-chi

   One, two, three

   Usage

   The basic Okinawan counting system — entirely different from Japanese numbers

   Grammar Note

   Native Ryukyuan numerals (uchinaa-suushi), distinct from Japanese; used for counting objects

2. ゆーち、いちち、むーち

   Yuu-chi, i-chi-chi, muu-chi

   Four, five, six

   Usage

   Continuing the Okinawan count — useful for buying multiple items at markets

   Grammar Note

   Okinawan has no /tsu/. The word is ?iCiCi "five; also five years old", i.e. ichichi. Muuchi (muuCi "six") means "six", but the same sound means "rice cake" in the Okinawan winter festival

3. ななち、やーち、くくぬち

   Na-na-chi, yaa-chi, ku-ku-nu-chi

   Seven, eight, nine

   Usage

   Completing the Okinawan single-digit count — locals appreciate when visitors use them

   Grammar Note

   The word is kukunuCi "nine", i.e. kukunuchi: Japanese /ko/ and /no/ correspond to Okinawan /ku/ and /nu/. This word has no locative sense

4. とぅー

   Tu-u

   Ten (10)

   Usage

   The Okinawan word for ten; used in phrases like tuu-en (10 yen)

   Grammar Note

   Numbers above ten combine forms, e.g. tuutiichi (11); completely different from Japanese juu

5. てぃーちまい くれー

   Tii-chi-mai ku-ree

   Please give me one (of these)

   Usage

   Ordering one item at a market stall or food stand

   Grammar Note

   Kuree is the Ryukyuan form of "please give"; tiichimai adds emphasis meaning "just one"

6. じゅーてぃーち、じゅーたーち

   Juu-tii-chi, juu-taa-chi

   Eleven, twelve

   Usage

   Counting eleven and twelve in Ryukyuan — combining ten (tuu) with one and two

   Grammar Note

   For numbers over ten, Japanese juu is often borrowed. The native form tuutiichi also exists

7. にじゅー、さんじゅー

   Ni-juu, san-juu

   Twenty, thirty

   Usage

   Expressing twenty and thirty in Ryukyuan, using Japanese-derived sino-numerals

   Grammar Note

   For numbers 20 and above, Japanese sino-numerals have largely replaced native Ryukyuan forms

8. てぃーちめー くれー

   Tii-chi-mee ku-ree

   Please give me the first one

   Usage

   Choosing or requesting the first one in a sequence

   Grammar Note

   Mee is an ordinal suffix; tiichimee (1st), taachimee (2nd), etc.

9. いくちやいびーが？

   I-ku-chi yai-bii-ga?

   How many is it? / How old are you?

   Usage

   A versatile polite question asking for a quantity or someone's age

   Grammar Note

   Ikuchi is the Ryukyuan equivalent of "how many / how much / how old" — a versatile question word

10. ひゃく、せん、まん

    Hya-ku, sen, man

    One hundred, one thousand, ten thousand

    Usage

    Expressing larger numbers in Ryukyuan — useful for prices and negotiations

    Grammar Note

    Hyaku, sen, man are borrowed directly from Japanese sino-numerals; native Ryukyuan large numbers are no longer in use

11. わんねー にじゅーしち やいびーん

    Wan-nee ni-juu-shi-chi yai-bii-n

    I'm 27 years old

    Usage

    Answering when someone asks your age

    Grammar Note

    Ages are given with the Sino-Ryukyuan numerals alone, with no word for "years old". Tens-plus-units compounds serve as ages in their own right (rukuzuu?ici "sixty-one; also sixty-one years old", sicizuusaN "seventy-three; also seventy-three years old"). 27 is built the same way: nizuu (20) + sici (7). The suffix -See (years of age) appears only in hjakuSee (100); 120 is hjakuhataci

12. くとぅし にじゅーはち なやびーん

    Ku-tu-shi ni-juu-ha-chi na-ya-bii-n

    I turn 28 this year

    Usage

    Saying that your birthday falls within this year, so your age changes

    Grammar Note

    This year is kutusi; kuNdu means "this time, on this occasion". In the example "'jaanoo ~ najuN" (next year he turns forty-nine; kukunutuguzuu = forty-nine years old), an age change is "numeral + najuN". The polite form adds -abiiN, giving nayabiin

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