If you are not familiar with the Japanese counting system, you might be puzzled what the question even means. Surely having such an ancient and sophisticated culture, they must’ve been able to do so. After all they count to ten and beyond now. And why would one even think they couldn’t?

On Count of Three – Which One?

The Japanese language has two fundamentally different ways of counting.
One is the old Japanese native way which goes like this: hitotsu, futatsu, mittsu, yottsu, itsutsu, muttsu, nanatsu, yattsu, kokonotsu, tô (ひとつ、ふたつ、みっつ、よっつ、いつつ、むっつ、ななつ、やっつ、ここのつ、とお). And that’s where it ends. At least to learners of present day Japanese. So how do they count beyond ten?

There is the Sino-Japanese way of counting, which is taken over from China (the reading of the numbers has been adjusted to Japanese ears). This one goes like this: ichi, ni, san, shi, go, roku, shichi, hachi, kyû, jû (いち、に、さん、し、ご、ろく、しち、はち、きゅう、じゅう). And when you want to count beyond ten in modern day Japanese, this is the only option you have, and you’d go on like:

11 – jûichi（十一　じゅういち）“ten one”
12 – jûni（十二　じゅうに）“ten two”
13 – jûsan（十三　じゅうさん）“ten three”
113 – hyakujûsan（百十三　ひゃくじゅうさん）“hundred ten three”
etc.

You Can’t Just Count Things Like That

Unfortunately with the Chinese system, if you want to use numbers beyond abstract mathematics and actually count things, you’ll have to use counting words. So, modern Japanese, too, is using them and there are counting words for various things. Even the categories are absurdly random, such as: oblong objects, videos and trains, flat objects, pairs of socks & shoes, suits and jackets, chopsticks, dishes, wardrobes, appliances/cars/computers, flights, airplanes, people, songs, buildings, bites, ships and UFOs (yeah – they’re spaceships), big animals, small animals, birds & rabbits (of course they’re the same and neither shall be counted with the counter for small animals!) and so on. The list is excessive. In common usage there are about 100–200 counters, but if you’re a little more pedantic you’ll find that there are actually over 500 documented counting words, some of which are somewhat obscure like counters for rakes, gods, and buddhas.

And since most people including Japanese native speakers themselves can’t really remember all of them, let alone when to use them, they have a universal cop out: the counter for round-ish and otherwise oddly shaped things that they apply when they just can’t recall how to count whatever this odd thing is they’re referring to: 個 (ko).

The Goode Olde Dayes

The Chinese way of counting along with counting words got introduced to Japan when the Chinese writing system (kanji) came into the country around the 5th century AD during the Asuka Period. Fast forward 200 years and the Sino-Japanese readings of Chinese numbers get standardised and Japanese bureaucrats and monks are now keeping records using these numbers. One can assume the normal folks still didn’t use them widely yet – this will be adapted over the following 300 years.

So how did Japanese count beyond 10 in the goode olde dayes before the Chinese system got introduced?

The Japanese native numbers are actually: hî, fû, mî, yô, itsu, mû, nana, yâ, koko, tô（ひい・ふう・みい・よう・いつ・むう・なな・やあ・ここ・とお). So basically the beginning part of the currently still in use Japanese native counting. Counting hiTOTSU, fuTATSU, miTTSU, yoTTSU etc. is actually more akin to counting 1個, 2個 i.e. using the universal cop-out counting word 個 in the Sino-Japanese system. The ‘tsu’ or ‘ttsu’ ending in the native Japanese system is actually a universal counter for things.

Now, if you lived 1500 years ago, and you wanted to count beyond 10 you’d simply count like this:

11 – tô amari hitotsu (“1 above 10”)　とお あまり ひとつ
12 – tô amari futatsu (“2 above 10”)　とお あまり ふたつ
13 – tô amari mittsu (“3 above 10”)　とお あまり みつ

… you get the gist. Then 20 is (wait for it)

20 – hatachi　はたち　
Yes, that oddball number for “20 years old” that doesn’t really mix well with all the other numbers for counting age, which is still used by everyone, despite the official reading for 20歳 (“20 years old”) is actually “nijissai”（にじっさい). It’s an old remnant of a bygone era.

21 – hatachi amari hitotsu (“1 above 20”)　はたち あまり ひとつ
22 – hatachi amari futatsu (“2 above 20”)　はたち あまり ふたつ

etc.

30 – miso　みそ
40 – yoso　よそ
50 – iso　いそ
60 – muso　むそ
70 – nanaso　ななそ
80 – yaso　やそ
90 – kokonoso　ここのそ

100 – momo　もも
200 – futaho/futao　ふたほ（ふたお）
300 – miho/mio　みほ（みお）

1000 – chi　ち
2000 – futachi　ふたち
3000 – misochi　みそち

10,000 – yorozu　よろづ
20,000 – futayorozu　ふたよろづ
90,000 – kokonoyorozu　ここのよろづ

99,999,999
English: ninetyninemillionninehundredninetyninethousandninehundredninetynine
Old: ここのちここのほここのそあまりここのよろずここのちここのほここのそあまりここのつ
New: きゅうせんきゅうひゃくきゅうじゅうきゅうまんきゅうせんきゅうひゃくきゅうじゅうきゅう
Kanji: 九千九百九十九万九千九百九十九

If anything, the Sino-Japanese system seems longer winded with large numbers, and we now have to remember all those stupid counting words.

Really No Counting Words?

Well, to be super precise, the native Japanese way of counting did not really have no counting words either. It just wasn’t as systematic. It did use counting words for things, days, years, years of age, and people. So in the Asuka period, before the Chinese writing system was introduced they’d count years like 1 year: hitotose (ひととせ), 2 years: futatose (ふたとせ), 20 years: hatachi (はたち), 21 years: hatachi amari hitotose (はたちあまりひととせ) etc. They’d count people like 1 person: hitori (ひとり), 2 persons: futari (ふたり), 3 persons: mitari (みたり) etc.

Ever since though, almost all ways of counting things have been replaced with the Sino-Japanese system. Some remainders of the old system do exist, but as a mix where they’d use the old system up to some arbitrary number, after which they switch to the Sino-Japanese counting with counters. For example days of a month:

1日 – tsuitachi　ついたち
A notable exception, because it has its origin in 月立ち (“beginning of the month”)
2日 – futsuka　ふつか
3日 – mikka　みっか
4日 – yokka　よっか
5日 – itsuka　いつか
6日 – muika　むいか
7日 – nanoka　なのか
8日 – yôka　ようか
9日 – kokonoka　ここのか
10日 – tôka　とおか
11日 – jûichinichi　じゅういちにち
(“ten one day” – this is where the Sino-Japanese system kicks in again)

Elsewhere they only count the old way for 1 and 2, and switch to Sino-Japanese counting for 3 and more. For example bags:

1袋 – hitofukuro　ひとふくろ (“one bag”)
2袋 – futafukuro　ふたふくろ (“two bags”)
袋3枚 – fukuro sanmai　ふくろさんまい (“bags three {flat things counter}”)

And people:
一人 – hitori　ひとり (“one person/alone”)
2人 – futari　ふたり (“two people/a couple/together”)
3人 – sannin　さんにん (“three people”)
From here on the 人 “human/person” suddenly becomes the counter switching to Sino-Japanese numbering.

Also on a side note: if you write 1人 it always means one person, but if you mean ‘alone’ you’d always write the kanji 一人 never the Arabic numerals.