Why is “ number ” abbreviated as “ No. ” ? [ duplicate ]

Why is “ number ” abbreviated as “ No. ” ? [ duplicate ]

The spelling ofnumberisnumber, but the abbreviation isNo( № ) . There is no letteroinissue, so where do this spelling come from ?

choster's user avatar
Prabhat Sinha's user avatar

1 Answer1

No( frequently styled) is the abbreviation for the Latin tidingsnumero( in issue ) . Why be it also used to shorten the English Bibleact? Because Latinate abbreviations were second nature to educated masses who write in Latin . When they compose in English , they contain these abbreviations over to the “ fresh ” words .

  • lb, abbreviation of Latinlibra( remainder ) – repurposed as the abbreviation for English :pound

  • &, a stylized style to write Latinet( and ) – repurposed as the abbreviation for English :and

pound, abbreviation of Latinlibra( balance ) – repurposed as the abbreviation for English :pound

&, a stylized way to compose Latinet( and ) – repurposed as the abbreviation for English :and

  • Boast on Meta

Relate

  • Khovanskii ‘s theorem in nilpotent radical ?

  • In Euclid ‘s Element , Book I , Proposition 47 , Interpretation in term of areas

English Language & Usage
Caller
  • Stack Overflow
  • Teams
  • Advertising
  • Talent
  • About
  • Press
  • Legal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Cookie Policy
  • Blog

Site design / logo © 2025 Stack Exchange Inc ;
user contribution licensed underCC BY-SA.
rev 2025.7.29.32171

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *