Sunday Times 2

Whether it’s a birthday, the address of your first house, or your age, numbers tend to hold certain significance in everyone’s lives.
From an online survey of more than 44,000 people, seven came out as the world’s most popular number, followed by three and eight.
But what is the significance of these numbers, and why are so many people drawn towards the number seven?

In China, the number 7 is considered lucky because it sounds similar to the Chinese words for ‘arise’ and ‘life’.

It is also symbolic of togetherness and, as a result, is seen as a good omen in relationships.

The number six traditionally represents humanity, and therefore seven is seen as the centre of humanity and its connection to the creator.

Seven is also the number of the universe and combines the heavens, typically symbolised by the number three, and the body of Earth, associated with the number four.

The number appears regularly throughout cultures and history, too.

For example, there are seven ancient wonders of the world, seven days of the week, seven circles of the universe, seven deadly sins, and seven basic musical notes.

In Buddhism, seven is the number of ascent, and Buddha is said to have walked this number of steps at his birth.

While in Christianity, God is represented by the seventh ray in the centre of the six rays of creation.

Hebrew tradition states seven is the number of intelligence, and there are seven Great Holy Days in the Jewish year.

Elsewhere, the traditional Menorah has seven branches. As part of the numbers poll, respondents were asked to nominate their favourite number. In total, people chose 1,123 individual numbers from 30,025 submissions. Almost half of the submissions were for numbers between one and 10.

Every number between 1 and 100 was chosen, as were 472 numbers of those between 1 and 1000. The lowest whole number that received no points was 110.

London-based author Alex Bellos who conducted the study said: ‘The reason why a reverence for the number seven is a constant throughout human history can never be known, but to me the only credible reason is because of its unique numerical properties.
‘Of the numbers between 1 and 10 seven is the most arithmetically special.

‘It is the only number that cannot be multiplied or divided with other numbers in the group. For example, the numbers from 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 can be doubled and still sit within the group. ‘The numbers 6, 8 and 10 divide by 2 and 9 divides by 3.’ In second place in Bellos’ poll was the number three.

It is similarly lucky, especially in China because it sounds like the word birth.

Many eastern cultures also consider there to be three important stages to life, namely birth, marriage and death.

In Christianity, the number three represents the Trinity – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit; Three gifts were bought to Jesus in his manger and there were three crosses at Calvary.

This number is often used to represent the heavens.

According to Teutonic mythology, three is the number of good fortune and fate.

The number three is also significant in Norse mythology and paganism. For example, Thor has three main weapons for use against the giants.

Elsewhere, in Slavic religion, Triglav is the three-headed god of war.

In third place in the poll was the number eight. Spiritually, the number eight is symbolic of infinity and paradise because it follows the seven days of creation.

It is seen as lucky in Buddhism, because there were traditionally eight good luck omens, and in China it is seen as a sign of wealth and prosperity.

The number 88 is also significant in China because, when written, it resembles the characters used for joy and happiness.

In Islam, the throne of the world is supported by eight angels, each one corresponding to the eight divisions of space and the groups of constant letters in the Arabic alphabet.

Asked why he undertook the project Alex Bellos said: ‘Favourite numbers are a fascinating area of research since they reveal surprising ways that we are influenced by arithmetic.

© Daily Mail, London

WHAT YOUR FAVOURITE NUMBER SAYS ABOUT YOU The art of numerology claims everything is broken down into single-digit numbers and claims these numbers are present throughout nature and history. One: Traditionally linked to the sun, it is seen as a ‘strong and individualistic’ number and people who favour this number are good leaders with courage and ambition. They can also be demanding and selfish. Two: People who prefer the number two are prone to being emotional and intuitive but are often introverted and overwhelmed by negative emotions. Three: Outgoing and witty people tend to favour the number three. They are expressive and artistic but can be aggressive and egotistical. Four: Alternatively,people who like the number four are sturdy, steady and reliable. They can be stubborn and complain a lot. Five: This number is linked to travel. Those who prefer this number hate being stuck in one place for too long and are easily bored. They have a tendency to be dramatic and fickle. Six: If someone prefers the number six they are calm and caring, but prone to being clingy, self-righteous and vain. Seven: The winning number in the online poll was seven. According to numerology, this claims the majority of people who took part in the study were wise and intellectual, but can also be critical and impatient. Eight: Powerful, successful people tend to favour the number eight, which came third in the poll and is associated with Uranus, but this can make them materialistic and workaholics. Nine: This number is said to combine the other numbers and their traits. People who prefer the number nine are prone to mood swings and self-pity.

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