Basic Numbers

Learn how to count in Lusoga from 1 to 1000.

Numbers 1-10

Lusoga	English
Ndala	One
Ibiri	Two
Isatu	Three
Ina	Four
Itanu	Five
Mukaga	Six
Musanvu	Seven
Munaana	Eight
Mwenda	Nine
Ikumi	Ten

Numbers 11-99

• 11-19 are formed by combining Ikumi na (ten and) with the single digit
  • Example: Ikumi na ndala = Eleven (ten and one)
• Tens have their own words:
  • Abiri = Twenty
  • Asatu = Thirty
  • Ana = Forty
  • Atanu = Fifty
  • Nkaga = Sixty
  • Nsanvu = Seventy
  • Kinaana = Eighty
  • Kyenda = Ninety

Hundreds

Lusoga	English
Kikumi	One hundred
Bibiri	Two hundred
Bisatu	Three hundred
Bina	Four hundred
Bitanu	Five hundred
Lukaga	Six hundred
Lusanvu	Seven hundred
Lunaana	Eight hundred
Luenda	Nine hundred

Thousands

Lusoga	English
Lukumi	1000
Nkumi ibiri	2000
Nkumi isatu	3000
Nkumi ina	4000
Nkumi itanu	5000
Kakaga	6000
Kasanvu	7000
Kanaana	8000
Kenda	9000
Mutwalo (mlala)	10000

Pattern Notes

• Notice how prefixes change for different number ranges:
  • I- for some single digits (ibiri, isatu, ina, itanu)
  • Mu- for others (mukaga, musanvu, munaana)
  • Bi- for hundreds
  • Ka- for thousands

Cultural Context

• Numbers in Lusoga follow patterns based on prefixes, making them systematic once you understand the rules
• The counting system reflects the decimal (base-10) system, but with unique words for different ranges
• Numbers are often used in traditional stories and proverbs
• In formal situations, it's important to be precise with numbers