periods or commas for decimal points in Spanish?
Thread poster: MollyRose
MollyRose
MollyRose  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 06:00
English to Spanish
+ ...
Feb 15, 2011

I was taught that in Spanish a comma separates decimals, and a period separates thousands. One thousand would be 1.000 in Spanish, and one and one tenth would be 1,1.

However, someone pointed out a link that apparently most of the world, including Spanish-speaking countries, now do it like we do in English. Is it still done the old way in Spain?

Is it true that most Spanish readers from Latin America now do it the English way? If so, I need to change the way I type num
... See more
I was taught that in Spanish a comma separates decimals, and a period separates thousands. One thousand would be 1.000 in Spanish, and one and one tenth would be 1,1.

However, someone pointed out a link that apparently most of the world, including Spanish-speaking countries, now do it like we do in English. Is it still done the old way in Spain?

Is it true that most Spanish readers from Latin America now do it the English way? If so, I need to change the way I type numbers, since most of the audience for whom I translate is from Mexico, and then also from Central and South America.

P.S. I couldn't find a forum called "grammar" or "style," so hopefully I've found the right place to ask this. If not, please forgive me and tell me how to find the right one.
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Henry Hinds
Henry Hinds  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:00
English to Spanish
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In memoriam
Two Conventions Feb 15, 2011

In Mexico and down through Central America they use the decimal point and comma as in the USA, which has always been the case and that's how I learned. In Spain and South America they are reversed. This has been discussed before and more exact information exists; I don't have it. You might try Googling.

There is no "one way" just as there is no "neutral" Spanish, howwver, we all understand each other quite well.


 
Steven Capsuto
Steven Capsuto  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 07:00
Member (2004)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Agreed Feb 15, 2011

Henry is right on the money as always (though I've never been clear on exactly where in Latin America the transition takes place).

In any case, if your translation is for the U.S. market, use decimal points and comma separators, not the other way around.


 
Cécile A.-C.
Cécile A.-C.
United States
Local time: 07:00
Member (2010)
Portuguese to French
+ ...
In Europe, Africa... Feb 15, 2011

Decimals are shown with a comma, since there are not complete numbers where as thousands and ten thousands, switch categories. For my part, I prefer that way it's makes more sense. It's a question of habits, I guess...

 
Pablo Bouvier
Pablo Bouvier  Identity Verified
Local time: 12:00
German to Spanish
+ ...
periods or commas for decimal points in Spanish? Feb 15, 2011

MollyRose wrote:

I was taught that in Spanish a comma separates decimals, and a period separates thousands. One thousand would be 1.000 in Spanish, and one and one tenth would be 1,1.

However, someone pointed out a link that apparently most of the world, including Spanish-speaking countries, now do it like we do in English. Is it still done the old way in Spain?

Is it true that most Spanish readers from Latin America now do it the English way? If so, I need to change the way I type numbers, since most of the audience for whom I translate is from Mexico, and then also from Central and South America.

P.S. I couldn't find a forum called "grammar" or "style," so hopefully I've found the right place to ask this. If not, please forgive me and tell me how to find the right one.


Take a look here. May be some style guides from international organisations will help you.

Bear in mind that the question will have quite different answers depending if you are asking about Spain spanish or LA spanish, and in LA spanish depending of the LA country.

[Edited at 2011-02-16 09:49 GMT]


 
FarkasAndras
FarkasAndras  Identity Verified
Local time: 12:00
English to Hungarian
+ ...
Space Feb 15, 2011

Henry Hinds wrote:

In Mexico and down through Central America they use the decimal point and comma as in the USA, which has always been the case and that's how I learned. In Spain and South America they are reversed.


In Spain, where the standard decimal separator is the comma, the grouping separator is often a (non-breaking) space.
So, instead of 7.432.230,30 you get 7 432 230,30.
It helps reduce the confusion a bit, and it's what the RAE recommends. Or maybe I just prefer the grouping space because it coincides with the Hungarian convention...


Adam Bogar
 
MollyRose
MollyRose  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 06:00
English to Spanish
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
specific country usage Feb 15, 2011

Someone just sent me this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decimal_mark

It gives a history, etc. and also lists which countries use a comma and which use a period. It also shows which countries use other ways of writing numbers.

Thanks, everyone, who sent replies. They were useful. This link, however, might help someone in the future more specifically!


 
Henry Hinds
Henry Hinds  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:00
English to Spanish
+ ...
In memoriam
Another Convention Feb 16, 2011

This scheme is often used in Mexico, alternating apostrophe and comma as separators, examples:

2'346,560
3,027'994,399

I should clarify that you do not need to use this system, using all commas is fine.

[Editado a las 2011-02-16 00:21 GMT]


 
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 12:00
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
+ ...
Oh my! Feb 16, 2011

Henry Hinds wrote:
This scheme is often used in Mexico, alternating apostrophe and comma as separators, examples:
2'346,560
3,027'994,399

¡Ay mi madre!


 
Carlos Umaña
Carlos Umaña  Identity Verified
Local time: 05:00
English to Spanish
+ ...
Both, as all suggested Oct 31, 2014

I used to be adamant regarding the use of commas as a decimal mark in Spanish, however, the trend (and suggestion) is now to go for the period.

Check out this short and insightful explanation:

http://www.fundeu.es/recomendacion/decimales-coma-y-punto-son-ambas-validas/


 
Merab Dekano
Merab Dekano  Identity Verified
Spain
Member (2014)
English to Spanish
+ ...
RAE Oct 31, 2014

The REA recommends, in its 2010 edition, to use spaces between thousands (except, obviously, for dates). therefore:

Three thousand would be 3 000 (with the space). However, the year two thousand would be 2000 (no space, no comma, no dot, nothing).

Decimals are separated with commas, such as 2,2, etc.

For currencies it is recommended to use the following format: 10 USD (and not USD10, however, the latter is "tolerated" if the text is from "Americas"). Simil
... See more
The REA recommends, in its 2010 edition, to use spaces between thousands (except, obviously, for dates). therefore:

Three thousand would be 3 000 (with the space). However, the year two thousand would be 2000 (no space, no comma, no dot, nothing).

Decimals are separated with commas, such as 2,2, etc.

For currencies it is recommended to use the following format: 10 USD (and not USD10, however, the latter is "tolerated" if the text is from "Americas"). Similarly, 10 $ is preferred to $10, but again, for "Americas" it is ok to go either way.

There are a bunch of other extensive rules, with tones of exceptions listed. I simply go and consult the corresponding page, once I am confronted with a weird case.

I also think that consistency is very important. So, if I use 10 $ in a text, I stick to it across the entire text.
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Werner Maurer
Werner Maurer  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 04:00
Spanish to English
+ ...
spaces Nov 2, 2014

I also like the spaces, because that leaves no room at all for confusion: where a comma OR a period appears, it can have only one function, that of decimal point. 123 456 789.3 = 123 456 789,3. Harder to read, though, than having a period or a comma there. Plus, confusion can really only arise when there are exactly three digits to the right of the decimal point. Guess that happens often enough, though.


[Edited at 2014-11-02 00:31 GMT]


 


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periods or commas for decimal points in Spanish?






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