Skaitmena

Skaitmena is a symbol used to represent a value in a numeral system. It is a single unit of a base and is written in combination with other skaitmenos to form numbers. The order and position of digits determine a number’s value, through the place-value principle.

In the common decimal system (base-10), skaitmena values range from 0 to 9. A number such as 3057 is formed from the digits 3, 0, 5 and 7, whose positions determine their contributions to the total. The same idea applies to other bases: in a base-b system, the allowed digits run from 0 to b−1. When b exceeds 10, representations often use additional symbols or letters (for example, hexadecimal uses 0–9 and A–F to denote values 0–15).

In computing and information theory, the concept of a skaitmena extends to digits in any base used to encode data. The binary system, for instance, uses digits 0 and 1, while higher bases may be employed in specialized encoding schemes.

Etymology and usage vary by language, but the core idea remains consistent: a skaitmena is a basic symbol that conveys a numeric value within a positional numeral system. It is a fundamental element in mathematics, computer science, and everyday number writing. See also numeral system, digit, base, and place value.