Why do we separate digits by 10^3?

Question

I know this seems like a stupid question, but why do we separate digits with commas every 3 digits? Is there some sort of reason for this? is it easier to count over 3 digits, rather than 5 or 10? I realize it's partly because of our naming system (thousand, million, billion, trillion), but 3 seems like a very arbitrary number to me.

100 Quintillion
1 * 10^20
100,000,000,000,000,000,000

1,00000,00000,00000,00000
1 Quadripenten (new number naming system?)

1,0000000000,0000000000
1 Billidecen

I realize you would need new number systems, so I guess
10 = ten
100 = duen
1000 = trien
10000 = quadren
100000 = penten
------------------------
1000000 = sexten
10000000 = septen
100000000 = octen
1000000000 = nonen
10000000000 = decen

I figure if our number system is base ten, why not separate our digits in groups of 10? or maybe 5? something that's easier to simplify exponents with, rather than by 3 (doesn't divide well with 10).

I suppose the choice of 3 digits might be due to human memory; maybe someone decided that groups of 3 digits were the easiest to remember.

Another reason might be that it's faster to say
Example:
1,243,463
one million two hundred fourty three thousand four hundred sixty three
12,43463
twelve millipenten four quadren three trien four duen sixty three

Although the base-10^5 uses less characters, I suppose it should depend more on the amount of syllables. Both of them end up having 17 syllables as well.

Etymology:
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=thousand
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/thousand

I'm just curious as to what everyone's opinions on this are. I doubt any change would ever happen, just like converting from the US system of weights and measures to the metric system, or from pi to tau.

sparky · Accepted Answer

in the west (most of Europe and America's) one reason is for ease of reading.

another is the most common western language of math groups numbers in three digit sequences:
that is -> ones, tens, hundreds

with each new group of place values having a new additional name

thousands, millions, billions, etc.

so: ones, tens, hundreds, then one thousands, ten thousands, hundred thousands, then on millions, ten millions, hundred millions, etc.

There is no loss of value if the comma's are not used. It really is just for ease of reading.

? · Answer

I do not agree with the answerer who feel that the credit of all the inventions should go to the Muslims because they seem to have forgotten the history. Before the advent of present day Islam or before Allah (swt) sent the Holy Quran the Arabs were a blot on the name of Humanity. The same people after advent of the present day Islam and taking cue from the Holy Quran started searching for the truth and could make all the above and many more inventions. So I think credit going to Islam is justified. World is controlled by the media now and the media is controlled by the Zionists. This is the reason the world has ignored the Islamic contribution to Science and Literature.

? · Answer

yeah because it is easier to be recognize because the name of the number are by pairs of zeros exatly by three 
for example 1 000. if I write 1000000000000 at first sight you cant tell me which number it is 
BUT if I write it like this 1 000 000 000 000 you can easily say it is 1 trillion. you see three pairs make the -llion prefix million,billion.trillion  and etc. so you can write close them if you want 1000000000000000 but at leat put comm or point like this 1,000,000,000,000,000
so i gave you two reasons pair of 3 zeroes make -llion and it is easier to be recognized.

? · Answer

I think you're asking about culture-specific formatting.
1000000>1,000,000 IN ENGLISH &American style more in western cultures..

in Asia
1000000>10,00,000

1000000000>1,00,00,00,000

because counting numbers are as in west one, ten, thousand ,million and on

but in Asia n India
one ,thousand,lakh(.1M),CRORE(.1b)

Mukesch · Answer

I do not read or write commas in them, so what ?

Why do we separate digits by 10^3?

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