Native Japanese Numbers (Hitotsu, Futatsu, Mittsu)
Before Chinese characters arrived in Japan in the 5th century, Japanese had its own number words. Most were displaced by the Sino-Japanese readings (ichi, ni, san) you see in modern Japanese. The native (Yamato) numbers survived in three places: counting general objects with the 〜つ counter, naming the first ten days of the month, and as the root for hitori and futari.
The native 1 to 10
| # | Display | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 一つ | ひとつ | hitotsu native form; root of hitori (1 person) | |
| 2 | 2 | 二つ | ふたつ | futatsu native form; root of futari (2 people) | |
| 3 | 3 | 三つ | みっつ | mittsu | |
| 4 | 4 | 四つ | よっつ | yottsu | |
| 5 | 5 | 五つ | いつつ | itsutsu | |
| 6 | 6 | 六つ | むっつ | muttsu | |
| 7 | 7 | 七つ | ななつ | nanatsu | |
| 8 | 8 | 八つ | やっつ | yattsu | |
| 9 | 9 | 九つ | ここのつ | kokonotsu | |
| 10 | 10 | 十 | とお | tō drops the tsu suffix; irregular |
The 〜つ counter
〜つ is the general-purpose counter for objects 1 to 10 when no specific counter applies. It uses the native readings: hitotsu, futatsu, mittsu, yottsu, itsutsu, muttsu, nanatsu, yattsu, kokonotsu, tō. After 10, you must switch to a specific counter (such as 個 ko) or the bare Sino-Japanese number.
Examples: りんごを三つください (ringo o mittsu kudasai) means "three apples please". 問題が三つあります (mondai ga mittsu arimasu) means "there are three problems". Both are correct, polite, and unambiguous.
〜つ is preferred when the speaker is unsure of the specific counter, when the listener context is informal, or when the object truly has no specific category (an abstract idea, a problem, a wish, an option).
Hitori, futari, and the people connection
The native bases hito- and futa- show up again in the people counter. 一人 hitori (1 person) and 二人 futari (2 people) are irregular precisely because they preserve the native numbers. From 3 onwards, the people counter switches to Sino + 人 (nin): san-nin, yo-nin, go-nin. Full table at /counters/people.
The days of the month connection
The first ten days of the month are read with native numbers + 日:
| Day | Kanji | Romaji | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 一日 | tsuitachi | totally irregular - "moon-rising" |
| 2 | 二日 | futsuka | |
| 3 | 三日 | mikka | |
| 4 | 四日 | yokka | |
| 5 | 五日 | itsuka | |
| 6 | 六日 | muika | |
| 7 | 七日 | nanoka | |
| 8 | 八日 | yōka | |
| 9 | 九日 | kokonoka | |
| 10 | 十日 | tōka |
From day 11 onwards, the regular pattern resumes: jū-ichi-nichi, jū-ni-nichi, jū-san-nichi. Three more irregularities live in this system: 14 = jū-yokka, 20 = hatsuka, 24 = ni-jū-yokka. See /dates for the full date format.
Frozen idioms that mix the systems
- 一人前 (ichi-nin-mae): "one person’s worth", a single serving
- 二の足 (ni no ashi): "the second step", hesitation
- 三日坊主 (mikka bōzu): "three-day monk", someone who quits quickly
- 八百屋 (yaoya): "eight-hundred shop", a greengrocer (the eight hundred refers to a vast variety)
These mix Sino and native readings in fixed patterns; they are memorised as single words rather than analysed.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 〜つ counter?
The 〜つ counter is a general-purpose counter inherited from the native (Yamato) number system. It runs from 1 to 10 only (hitotsu, futatsu, mittsu, ..., tō). It attaches to objects without a specific counter, and to abstract things like ideas or problems. Above 10, switch to a specific counter or the bare Sino-Japanese number.
Why are hitori and futari irregular?
They descend from the native (Yamato) hito- and futa- bases. When the people counter 人 (nin) was attached, the older native forms stuck for 1 person and 2 people. From 3 onwards, the counter takes the regular Sino number: san-nin, yo-nin, go-nin. See /counters/people for the full table.
Do native numbers go past 10?
Almost never in modern Japanese. Old Japanese had native readings for 20 (hatachi, surviving as 20 years old), 30, 100, and so on, but they have been displaced by Sino readings. The native system today is functionally limited to 1 to 10, plus the frozen forms hatachi and the day-of-the-month names.
When should I use 〜つ versus 〜個?
Both work for many small objects. 〜つ is older, slightly more colloquial, and uses native numbers (hitotsu, futatsu). 〜個 is Sino, regular all the way up, and slightly more neutral. In casual speech they are often interchangeable for small items: mittsu no ringo and san-ko no ringo both mean "three apples". Above 10, only 〜個 (and other specific counters) is available.
Continue: counters hub · people counter · dates.