Roman Numerals

Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and was used throughout the Roman Empire. They are based on a combination of letters from the Latin alphabet to represent numbers. In basic math classes, it is one of the important topics for kids to learn and write Roman numerals. It is also important to identify the Roman numerals that are appeared in multiple places including textbooks, question papers, brochures, etc.

What are Roman Numerals?

Roman numerals are an ancient number system used and are used in many places. In Roman numerals or the alphabet are used to represent fixed positive numbers. For instance, Roman numerals I, II, III, IV, and V represent 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively.

The standard representation of Roman numerals

Here is a basic guide to Roman numerals and their corresponding values:

I: 1

V: 5

X: 10

L: 50

C: 100

D: 500

M: 1000

Roman Numerals

Rules for Writing Roman Numerals

Roman numerals are written by combining these basic symbols. The larger value symbols are placed to the left of the smaller value symbols, and the values are added together to get the total value. However, there are certain rules to follow:

  • If a smaller value symbol appears to the left of a larger value symbol, the smaller value is subtracted from the larger value. For example, IV represents 4 (5 – 1) and IX represents 9 (10 – 1).
  • The subtractive principle applies only to I, X, and C. For example, 99 is represented as XCIX (XC = 90, IX = 9).
  • A symbol is not repeated more than three times in a row. If a value needs to be represented that is greater than the limit of three repetitions, a horizontal line is placed above the symbol to indicate multiplication by 1,000. For example, 4,000 is represented as IV̅ (IV with a line above it).

Here are some examples of numbers written in Roman numerals:

50: L

100: C

500: D

1000: M

List of Roman Numerals from 1 to 100

The below table contains the Roman numeral representation for the numbers from 1 to 100.

1 = I 26 = XXVI 51 = LI 76 = LXXVI
2 = II 27 = XXVII 52 = LII 77 = LXXVII
3 = III 28 = XXVIII 53 = LIII 78 = LXXVIII
4 = IV 29 = XXIX 54 = LIV 79 = LXXIX
5 = V 30 = XXX 55 = LV 80 = LXXX
6 = VI 31 = XXXI 56 = LVI 81 = LXXXI
7 = VII 32 = XXXII 57 = LVII 82 = LXXXII
8 = VIII 33 = XXXIII 58 = LVIII 83 = LXXXIII
9 = IX 34 = XXXIV 59 = LIX 84 = LXXXIV
10 = X 35 = XXXV 60 = LX 85 = LXXXV
11 = XI 36 = XXXVI 61 = LXI 86 = LXXXVI
12 = XII 37 = XXXVII 62 = LXII 87 = LXXXVII
13 = XIII 38 = XXXVIII 63 = LXIII 88 = LXXXVIII
14 = XIV 39 = XXXIX 64 = LXIV 89 = LXXXIX
15 = XV 40 = XL 65 = LXV 90 = XC
16 = XVI 41 = XLI 66 = LXVI 91 = XCI
17 = XVII 42 = XLII 67 = LXVII 92 = XCII
18 = XVIII 43 = XLIII 68 = LXVIII 93 = XCIII
19 = XIX 44 = XLIV 69 = LXIX 94 = XCIV
20 = XX 45 = XLV 70 = LXX 95 = XCV
21 = XXI 46 = XLVI 71 = LXXI 96 = XCVI
22 = XXII 47 = XLVII 72 = LXXII 97 = XCVII
23 = XXIII 48 = XLVIII 73 = LXXIII 98 = XCVIII
24 = XXIV 49 = XLIX 74 = LXXIV 99 = XCIX
25 = XXV 50 = L 75 = LXXV 100 = C

It’s worth noting that Roman numerals are still used today in certain contexts, such as indicating the year on some clocks or numbering the pages of prefaces and introductions in books.

Solved Examples on Roman Numerals

Example 1: Write 2021 in Roman numerals.

Solution:

2021 = 2000 + 20 + 1 

= (1000 + 1000) + (10 + 10) + 1

= MM + XX + I

= MMXXI

Therefore, 2021 = MMXXI

Example 2: How do you write 3999 in Roman numerals?

Solution:

3999 = 3000 + 900 + 90 + 9

= (1000 + 1000 + 1000) + (1000 – 100) + (100 – 10) + (10 – 1)

= MMM + CM + XC + IX

= MMMCMXCIX

Therefore, 3999 = MMMCMXCIX

Frequently Asked Questions on Roman Numerals

What is the Roman numeral for 1000?

The Roman numeral for 1000 is M.

What is the Roman numeral for 40?

The Roman numeral for 40 is XL.

What is XL in Roman numerals?

XL in Roman numerals represents the number 40.

What number is XXIX?

29 is written as XXIX in Roman numerals.

What is 200 in the Roman figure?

200 in the Roman figure is CC.