Sijajärjestelmä

Sijajärjestelmä is a Finnish term that translates to "positional system" or "place-value system" in English. It refers to a numerical system where the value of a digit depends on its position within the number. This is in contrast to non-positional systems, such as Roman numerals, where the value of a symbol is fixed regardless of its placement.

The most common example of a positional system is the decimal system, also known as base-10. In the decimal system, the number 123 means one hundred, two tens, and three ones. The digit '1' represents 100 because it is in the hundreds place, the digit '2' represents 20 because it is in the tens place, and the digit '3' represents 3 because it is in the ones place. Other positional systems exist, such as the binary system (base-2) used in computing, or the hexadecimal system (base-16).

The development of positional systems was a significant advancement in mathematics and facilitated more complex calculations and abstract thought. It allows for an infinite range of numbers to be represented using a finite set of digits. The concept is fundamental to modern arithmetic and the way we represent quantities.