The Use of Roman Numerals in Daily Life

Roman numerals were used for nearly 1800 years throughout Europe. Having originated in ancient Rome, they were still the common way of writing numbers in late Middle Ages. However, starting from the 11th century, Roman numerals were gradually replaced by the Hindu-Arabic numbers. This was due to some limitations that the Roman numerals posed for calculation and mathematical advances.

Nonetheless, as they are an important component of Western history and civilization, Roman numerals are still used in many aspects of modern life. Furthermore, this use is not confined to old clock towers or watches. So, where are Roman numerals used in modern daily life?

1. Regnal Numbers: Names of Monarchs and Popes

Roman numerals are still used as regnal numbers to refer to monarchs and Popes. They act as ordinal numbers for distinguishing among people with the same name in the same office throughout history. Commonly, a Roman numeral is used after a monarch or Pope’s regnal name to set them apart from their predecessors with the same name. This is because there are many monarchs -kings, queens, princes and princesses- who have used the same regnal names and reigned the same lands.

When a monarch or Pope’s name has a Roman numeral, this number is read as an ordinal. For example, the name Elizabeth II would be read as ‘Elizabeth the second’ or ‘Henry VIII’ as ‘Henry the eighth’. The tradition to use a regnal number to distinguish monarchs was adopted in Europe during the Middle Ages.

2. Generational Suffixes in Families

Similarly, Roman numerals are used in families for differentiating between people with the same name throughout generations. This type of usage is particularly seen in the U.S.
For example, one the grandsons of Henry Ford I was named Henry II whereas Henry II’s grandson is named Henry Ford III.

3. Watches and Clocks

Roman numerals can still be seen on clocks and watches - old or new. One fun fact is that the Romannumeral for the number 4 is usually depicted as IIII and not as IV. One famous exception to this is the Big Ben clock tower in London, on which the numerals are inscribed in lowercase and 4 is written as iv.

4. Copyright Dates

In the film and television industry, Roman numerals are used to indicate the year of production. On most films and television programmes, you would see the year of production written in Roman numerals such as © Time Warner Studio MCMXCVII or c.BBC MCMLXXVI. You can use roman numerals converter for challenging numbers.
While the official explanation for this choice of numbers is unknown, it is rumoured that this tradition started as “an attempt to disguise the age of films or television programmes”.

5. Movie Sequels

It is common to see Roman numerals in the names of films with sequels. Some of the most famous examples are as follows: The Godfather: Part II, The Godfather: Part III, Rocky II, Rocky III, Rocky IV, French Connection II, Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope.

6. Books, Printing, Plays

Roman numerals are still very commonly used in complex or long documents for the sake of simplification, hierarchy and organization. Book volumes, outlines, chapters (such as "Chapter IV" or "Volume II") and volumes of periodicals as well as page numbers of introductions, appendices and annexes are usually numbered with Roman numerals. Numbered points in print can also be written with Roman numerals. In addition, acts in plays are usually numbered with Roman numerals.

7. Buildings and Road Signs

Another place that we are likely to see Roman numerals today is buildings. In Europe, the year of construction can usually be still seen on the facades or cornerstones of older buildings. In some modern European countries, Roman numerals are still used to indicate the construction year or floor numbers of buildings. In some parts of Italy, you might notice road signs using Roman numerals as kilometre signs.

8. Law and Legal Documents

Roman numerals might still be used in law in order to organize the outlines of legal codes such as numbering sections or articles in laws, constitutions, or contracts. For example, "I. Introduction", "II. Methodology", III. Findings, etc.

9. Sports

Big and long-running sporting competitions such as the Olympic Games or the Super Bowl are numbered in Roman numerals. The Roman numerals represent how many times these games have been held.
For example, the The Athens Olympics in 2004 were the 28th Olympic games in the modern era. Thus, they were officially named ‘the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad’. A similar numbering style is used in American football championships, namely the Super Bowl. For instance, the 56th Super Bowl will be held in 2022 and its official name will be Super Bowl LVI.

10. Science

Unsurprisingly, science still makes use of Roman numerals. Subjects like chemistry, mathematics, astronomy, pharmaceuticals or seismology still apply Roman numerals when deemed necessary. In astronomy, you will notice that the natural satellites of planets - their moons- are designated with Roman numerals. For example, Saturn’s ‘moon’ Titan is designated as Saturn VI. Roman numerals are also used to signify quadrants in trigonometry or to group certain elements in the periodic table in chemistry.

11. Music

Roman numerals are applied in Western music theory as well. In Roman Numeral Analysis, these numerals are used to indicate the chords in a progression. They represent chords and coordinate with scale degrees 1- 7.

12. Politics

Mexico ‘counts’ its legislatures in Roman numerals. For example, the parliament elected in the 2018 election is referred to as LXIV Legislature.