Geography: The Amlicites have approached from the North on the East side of the Sidon. Their retreat was on a more Southerly route, as they eventually meet with the Lamanites who are coming up from the South through the valley containing the upper Sidon.
Social: Counts and Estimates in the Book of Mormon
The world of numbers constitutes an important mental category, and most societies have a fascination with numbers that tends to exceed the utilitarian. In addition to counting specific numbers of things, we also use numbers to mark important mental constructions as well as to estimate quantities. The Hebrews used numbers as markers of religiously important mental constructions, with numbers from the Old Testament becoming symbolic of types of periods rather than specific counts. For instance, the numbers 7 and 40 will appear multiple times in the Old Testament, based upon the days of the week and the 40 days in the wilderness/40 days and nights of rain. With the New Testament's emphasis on the godhead, we add 3 as an important recurring number.
Among many Mesoamerican cultures, the number 4 recurs frequently, as well as 20, or multiples of 20 (theirs was a base 20 counting system, hence 20 would be as significant as 10 in a decimal-system society). These cultures added other numbers that were significant to their particular calendar (such as 52 years in a "century.")
The way we humans use numbers can range far from a simple numbering of objects. We use numbers not only as estimates of counts, but also for uncountable categories. It is not uncommon in English to say "I've done it a thousand times," or "there were millions of ants at the picnic." When the Million Man March reached Washington, D.C. there were estimates of ten to twenty thousand, but certainly not a million. Nevertheless, the name signified the movement, not the number.
The Book of Mormon is a document written by humans, and it includes numbers. We should understand how the Book of Mormon understands those numbers. Certainly the writers of the Book of Mormon knew how to count, and so discussing proof of that notion is quite unnecessary. What is more interesting is how the Book of Mormon might use numbers apart from counting.
The very first important point to be made about numbers in the Book of Mormon is that they both appear and behave according to the decimal system. While this is the mathematical system with which the modern world is most familiar, it is by no means the only option available to the ancients. The Babylonians used a base 60 system from which we derive 60 minutes in an hour, and 360 degrees in a circle. The Mesoamericans typically used a base 20 system. Even though the Mesoamerican cultural area is proposed for the Book of Mormon, the numbers as we have them reflect the decimal system rather than base 20. For instance, the most common estimator numbers in the Book of Mormon are hundreds and thousands. These are benchmark numbers in a decimal system, where the presence of the one followed by all zeroes gives the number some conceptual value as a threshold. We need look only as far back as the turn of the millennium (and previous to any century change) to note how humanity pays more attention to these numbers than to those that do not end with zeros.
Numbers as estimates
Other than counting specific numbers of items, the simplest use of numbers is in estimating a count. The presumption is that while smaller numbers may be counted, there are numbers large enough that counts are unlikely, and they are estimated rather than counted. The Book of Mormon includes some clear examples of numbers that are being used as estimates:
Alma 24:27 And there was not a wicked man slain among them; but there were more than a thousand brought to the knowledge of the truth; thus we see that the Lord worketh in many ways to the salvation of his people.
Alma 28:10 And from the first year to the fifteenth has brought to pass the destruction of many thousand lives; yea, it has brought to pass an awful scene of bloodshed.11 And the bodies of many thousands are laid low in the earth, while the bodies of many thousands are moldering in heaps upon the face of the earth; yea, and many thousands are mourning for the loss of their kindred, because they have reason to fear, according to the promises of the Lord, that they are consigned to a state of endless wo. 12 While many thousands of others truly mourn for the loss of their kindred, yet they rejoice and exult in the hope, and even know, according to the promises of the Lord, that they are raised to dwell at the right hand of God, in a state of never-ending happiness. (See also Alma 49:23; Alma 57:14; Alma 62:17; 3 Ne. 3:24; 3 Ne. 17:25; Morm. 1:11)
The most common obvious estimator number is 1,000 in the Book of Mormon, but hundreds are infrequently used in a clear case of estimation:
Jacob 4:4 For, for this intent have we written these things, that they may know that we knew of Christ, and we had a hope of his glory many hundred years before his coming; and not only we ourselves had a hope of his glory, but also all the holy prophets which were before us.
What is more interesting that the clear cases of estimates is where there is a probable estimate that it treated as a firm count. Note that in the following verses the clear lexical markers of the estimates ("many," "about," "more than") are absent:
Alma 51:19 And it came to pass that there were four thousand of those dissenters who were hewn down by the sword; and those of their leaders who were not slain in battle were taken and cast into prison, for there was no time for their trials at this period.
Alma 53:18 Now behold, there were two thousand of those young men, who entered into this covenant and took their weapons of war to defend their country.
Alma 56:28 And also there were sent two thousand men unto us from the land of Zarahemla. And thus we were prepared with ten thousand men, and provisions for them, and also for their wives and their children.
Hel. 5:19 Therefore they did speak unto the great astonishment of the Lamanites, to the convincing them, insomuch that there were eight thousand of the Lamanites who were in the land of Zarahemla and round about baptized unto repentance, and were convinced of the wickedness of the traditions of their fathers.
In each of these cases, we have a number ending in a thousand that is given with the assurance of a counted number. However, it is quite probable that these are still estimates, and not counts. The very fact that the number is precisely even in each of these cases, combined with the large number that would make a count difficult, suggests that these numbers are still estimates. A. Brent Merrill makes a similar caution in regards to what appears to be a standard military unit of ten thousand (see Alma 56:28 and Morm. 6:11-15):
"The foregoing discussion further suggests that one must be careful when interpreting references to Nephite field armies normally composed of ten thousand men. To illustrate this point, the army of Antipus mentioned earlier almost certainly numbered about ten thousand when originally deployed. Through casualties and capture, this number was reduced to about six thousand. If, however, the Nephite reference to "ten thousand" was a form of unit designation-an organizational title-then one might properly say that, although his forces were seriously depleted, he still commanded an Army of Ten Thousand. An example of this can be seen in early Roman military organization. A unit called a "century," meaning one hundred, originally consisted of one hundred soldiers commanded by a "centurion."
Later, because a unit of one hundred men was too large for a single officer to control readily, the size varied from sixty to eighty men, but the designation "century" was retained. In other words, it is not certain whether Nephite armies of "ten thousand" always maintained this number of troops. There could have been more, or less, depending on battlefield attrition or evolving Nephite usage of this description as an organizational title. The phrase "ten thousand" might not always be an accurate count of manpower." (Merrill, A. Brent. "Nephite Captains and Armies." In: Warfare in the Book of Mormon. FARMS 1990, p. 270-271).
Just as an army of ten thousand might not equal precisely ten thousand, some of the other numbers given make most sense as estimates rather than specific counts. The very fact that the benchmark number is used suggests that these numbers are estimates rather than counts. Particularly when they are counting casualties, it is extremely unlikely that the dead always managed to occur in even thousands.
Combining counts and estimates
With this background on estimate numbers, there is a category of numbers that require more investigation. Numbers in the thousands can be reasonably presumed to be estimates because of the difficulty of accurately counting that many people, particularly when the counts always end up in even thousands. Counts in the hundreds, however, are a little more difficult to deal with, because hundreds are amenable to a count, particularly in the lower hundreds. Thus there are times in the Book of Mormon when it does appear that we do have relatively specific counts of populations:
Mosiah 9:19 And I, myself, with mine own hands, did help to bury their dead. And behold, to our great sorrow and lamentation, two hundred and seventy-nine of our brethren were slain.
In this case, the low number of hundreds, and the very specific 279 makes this a number that appears most reasonable as a count rather than an estimate. In spite of this, hundreds are also used as estimates:
Mosiah 18:34 And it came to pass that Alma and the people of the Lord were apprised of the coming of the king's army; therefore they took their tents and their families and departed into the wilderness. 35 And they were in number about four hundred and fifty souls.
Here the 450 number is potentially small enough to be a count, but it is specifically qualified as an estimate; "about four hundred and fifty souls." The most fascinating of these "estimates" is in Mosiah 18:16:
Mosiah 18:15 And again, Alma took another, and went forth a second time into the water, and baptized him according to the first, only he did not bury himself again in the water. 16 And after this manner he did baptize every one that went forth to the place of Mormon; and they were in number about two hundred and four souls; yea, and they were baptized in the waters of Mormon, and were filled with the grace of God.
In this case we have the curious example of a number that appears to be a count, 204, but which is expressly qualified as an estimate. Estimates are typically marked by benchmark numbers (10's, 100's, or 1,000's). This number ends in four, a very countable number. This case opens the possibility that there was a system for using a combination of estimates and counts. This might be the explanation for the way in which Helaman discusses his band after the addition of a small number:
Alma 57:19 But behold, my little band of two thousand and sixty fought most desperately; yea, they were firm before the Lamanites, and did administer death unto all those who opposed them.
This number, like the two hundred and four, appears to be a specific count. Nevertheless, it may be a composite number, just as the estimated two hundred and four could be an estimate. This number is composed of two parts that correspond to two different types of members of Helaman's command:
Alma 57:6 And it came to pass that in the commencement of the twenty and ninth year, we received a supply of provisions, and also an addition to our army, from the land of Zarahemla, and from the land round about, to the number of six thousand men, besides sixty of the sons of the Ammonites who had come to join their brethren, my little band of two thousand. And now behold, we were strong, yea, and we had also plenty of provisions brought unto us.
Helaman appears to make a distinction between his original force which is always designated as an even two thousand, and these additional sixty. He may refer to the two thousand, or to the two thousand and sixty. The two thousand is most likely an estimate number. It is unlikely that there were precisely two thousand young men (and not one more nor one less) who were willing to take up the burden of fighting to spare their parents from breaking the oath. The sixty, on the other hand, could very easily have been a counted number. In Helaman's usage we have a parallel to the interesting estimate of 204. The thousands units are counted, and then added to them are the more specific counted numbers.
It is also possible that some of the mixed thousand/hundred type numbers are similar estimates, even though they appear to have the flavor of counts when the appear in English, such as:
Alma 4:5 And it came to pass in the seventh year of the reign of the judges there were about three thousand five hundred souls that united themselves to the church of God and were baptized. And thus ended the seventh year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi; and there was continual peace in all that time.
3 Ne. 17:25 And the multitude did see and hear and bear record; and they know that their record is true for they all of them did see and hear, every man for himself; and they were in number about two thousand and five hundred souls; and they did consist of men, women, and children.
In these cases, the numbers are clearly estimates, but combine thousands and hundreds. Interestingly, they combine a thousand number with five hundred, which is half a thousand. There is one case, however, where the thousand is combined with four hundred rather than five hundred (Alma 63:4).
Anomalous numbers
With all of this tedious background, we are ready to tackle the most specific numbers in the Book of Mormon. These numbers come in descriptions of battle, both in the numbers of troops as well as the numbers of casualties. The first set of anomalous numbers comes in describing troop strength:
Morm. 2:9 And now, the Lamanites had a king, and his name was Aaron; and he came against us with an army of forty and four thousand. And behold, I withstood him with forty and two thousand. And it came to pass that I beat him with my army that he fled before me. And behold, all this was done, and three hundred and thirty years had passed away.
Morm. 2:25 And it came to pass that we did contend with an army of thirty thousand against an army of fifty thousand. And it came to pass that we did stand before them with such firmness that they did flee from before us.
In both of these cases we are dealing with military units. If we assume that each unit is ten thousand, and that the ten thousand is a standard designation rather than a count (as noted above) then these numbers could be counts of divisions, rather than counts of personnel. If the unit of ten thousand can be distinguished, then the various units could easily be counted.
The next set of anomalous numbers appears to follow the model of the estimate of two hundred and four:
Mosiah 9:18 And God did hear our cries and did answer our prayers; and we did go forth in his might; yea, we did go forth against the Lamanites, and in one day and a night we did slay three thousand and forty-three; we did slay them even until we had driven them out of our land.
Alma 24:22 And thus without meeting any resistance, they did slay a thousand and five of them; and we know that they are blessed, for they have gone to dwell with their God.
Both of these numbers appear to be counts because of the very explicit 43 and 5. However, they fit the model of the estimated 204, in that they are a number of thousands, plus the additional counted number. Counts in the thousands would be difficult to obtain precisely, especially in the aftermath of battle. These numbers should be estimates, even though they have the feel of a count. They are similar to other estimate numbers that are not declared to be estimates, and analogous to the specific instance where two hundred and four is declared to be an estimate.
By far the most intriguing numbers in the Book of Mormon appear in Alma 2:19:
Alma 2:19And it came to pass that the Nephites did pursue the Amlicites all that day, and did slay them with much slaughter, insomuch that there were slain of the Amlicites twelve thousand five hundred thirty and two souls; and there were slain of the Nephites six thousand five hundred sixty and two souls.
These numbers have all of the earmarks of specific counts. They are not rounded, and they have very detailed numbers in their digits. What makes these numbers most fascinating is that they appear to be interrelated. Using numerals instead of words, we have 12,562 and 6,532. There are comparisons that are difficult to explain between the two. First, there is 12,000 versus 6,000. Whatever we might think of the 12 and the 6, the very fact that one is precisely twice the other is suspicious. On top of the precise doubling of the thousands, and have an absolute match in the hundreds, with both having 500. In the final set of numbers, there is a difference, but a fascinating one. In the tens column we again have a doubling, and then in the ones column an exact match. The gross match is then described as doubled/exact/doubled/exact. The more exact pattern, from the larger to the smaller number, is: halved/exact/doubled/exact. This most specific set of counts in the Book of Mormon is highly suspicious, and appears to be a created number.
Speculating on the number system
It was noted at the beginning of this discussion that the number system is clearly decimal in the Book of Mormon. That is correct, but there is an intriguing possibility behind the numbers in the Book of Mormon. The numbers in the Book of Mormon appear to function as discrete units rather than the way we typically expect them to work. That is, we have a thousand category that is matched with a hundreds category, and then a tens and ones. The nature of the way the estimates work suggests that the original language was describing the language in these categories, rather than as the numbers as we have them. Thus the original appears to be saying (in the case of the most complex number) that there were 12 thousands, 5 hundreds, 6 tens, and 2 ones, rather than the more compact number that we write.
This method of adding units together to reach the total has an interesting match in Mesoamerican number systems:
"Although the bar-and-dot numbers are most common, numerals sometimes had head variants when carved in stone. For example, 4 could be represented by the head of the sun god with a very square eye, 6 by a head with a cross in the eye, and 8 by a representation of the young corn god. The number 10 was a death's head, and the glyphs for larger numbers were composed of a death's head (10) plus the attributes of the lower number. For example, 14 equals 10 plus 4, or a death's head (10) plus the attributes of the sun god (4)….
Among the Mexica, who also used a vigesimal system, numbers from 1 to 19 were made up of the corresponding numbers of dots or circles. Symbols were arbitrarily selected to represent greater quantities. A flag equaled 20, strands of hair or a feather 400, and a bag of copal incense 8000. (Weaver, Muriel. The Aztecs, Maya, and Their Predecessors. Seminar Press 1972, p. 101-102).
The structure of the Mesoamerican system for naming larger numbers matches precisely with that described in the Book of Mormon. What is clearly different is the base 20/base 10 difference.
The general evidence of numbers in the Book of Mormon suggests that they functioned on some system of estimates that differs from the one with which we are familiar. That system appears to be best described as one that names important categories of numbers (in our text, the tens, hundreds, and thousands). The last interesting question is whether or not the numbers we have accurately represent the numbers of the original, or whether or not they are in the decimal system because that is what Joseph understood.
Regardless of how the original system operated, he could easily translate the units into decimals, and the general relationships between numbers would continue to work, although they would not describe precise numbers. There is insufficient evidence to support this hypothesis, but it is a possibility that the decimal system was not the native system of the plates. However, it may have been imported with the Nephites, and retained in their culture. In any case, it would appear that the mode of estimates supports a language structure more similar to the Mesoamerican system than the modern English system.