- Isopsephy
Isopsephy (IPA2|ˈaɪsəsɛfi, "iso" meaning "equal" and "psephos" meaning "pebble") is the Greek word for the practice of adding up the number values of the letters in a word to form a single number. The early Greeks used pebbles arranged in patterns to learn
arithmetic andgeometry . ALatin word for "pebbles" is "calculi", the origin of the word "calculate."Isopsephy is related to
Gematria , the same practice using theHebrew alphabet , and the ancient number systems of many other peoples (for theArabic alphabet version, seeAbjad numerals ). A Gematria of Latin-script languages was also popular inEurope from theMiddle Ages to theRenaissance and indeed its legacy remains innumerology and Masonic symbolism today. [ [http://www.masoncode.com/Masonry%20and%20Cabala.htm Masonry and the Cabala - Gematria as a Key to the Secrets of Freemasonry and Masonic Codes ] ]Letter Values
See also
* Arabic abjad
*English Qabalah
*Gematria
*Greek numerals
*Theomatics Notes
References
*"The Greek Qabalah: Alphabetic Mysticism and Numerology in the Ancient World", Kieren Barry,
Samuel Weiser , 1999. ISBN 1-57863-110-6External links
* [http://www.numberman.net/Greek_Gem_Calculator.html Greek Gematria/Isopsephia Calculator - Requires Flash 8 or greater - Also Accepts Unicode Greek letters and will add them up for you]
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