Hi, friends! Welcome to the first edition of #JustGetRid - An occassional series of threads in which we discuss why on earth something still exists and debate whether or not to #JustGetRid of it!
If you’ve got any suggestions for #JustGetRid threads, please feel free to post them (as new threads obviously).
#Number ONE - Roman Numerals
What’s the deal with this anyway? Why are some things (Superbowls, BBC credits etc) still using roman numerals!? It’s like, hey guys, you know the empire fell right!
Greek was the lingua franca of the empire, Latin existed for formal and official usage, and after Constantine’s conversion to Christianity became associated with the church and the various Western states (the Franks, the Goths, the Saxons) in the wake of the declining imperial power. The development of French, Spanish and Italian as Latin descendants shows that to tie it exclusively to the existence of the Roman Empire proper is a folly.