Numero sign facts for kids

The numero sign (or №) is a special symbol that means "number." It's like a shortcut for writing the word "number." You might see it used for addresses, in lists, or for items in a series.

For example, instead of writing "Number 22 Main Street," you can write "№ 22 Main Street." Both ways mean the same thing and are read aloud as "Number 22 Main Street."

The numero sign looks like a capital letter N combined with a small, raised letter o. Sometimes, this small 'o' is underlined. It comes from the Latin word numero, which means "by the number." Many languages that come from Latin, like Italian, French, Spanish, and Portuguese, use a similar idea for their word for "number."

Where is the Numero Sign Used?

Even though the numero sign is used a lot around the world, it's not a standard letter in most European languages. Let's look at how different places use it.

English-Speaking Countries

In English, people often use "No." as a short way to say "number." In American English, you might also see the hash or pound sign (#) used before a number, like "#5" for "number 5." However, the hash sign can sometimes cause problems online because it's also used for hashtags. The numero sign doesn't have this problem.

French Language Use

The numero symbol isn't very common in France. It's also not on standard French keyboards. Instead, French writers often use "n^o" (an "n" followed by a small, raised "o"). For more than one number, they use "n^os". Sometimes, people even use the degree symbol (°) instead of the small 'o' because it looks similar and is easy to type.

Spanish Language Use

In Spain, the numero sign isn't usually used. Spanish speakers shorten "número" (number) by writing "n.^o" for one number and "n.^os" for several numbers. This is a special Spanish way of abbreviating words. They don't use "no." because it could be confused with the Spanish word no (which means "no" or "not"). In Latin America, the numero sign (№) is more common.

Italian Language Use

In Italy, the numero sign is usually replaced with "n." or "nº". The "º" is an ordinal indicator, which is a special symbol used to show order, like "1º" for "first" or "2º" for "second."

Russian Language Use

Even though the letter "N" isn't in the Cyrillic alphabet, the numero sign (№) is used in Russian writing. You can find it on Russian computer and typewriter keyboards.

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  An old typewriter from 1912 with a Russian keyboard. You can see the № sign on the ‘8’ key.

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  A Russian typewriter from around 1985. The № sign is on the ‘1’ key.

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  A computer keyboard with a Russian layout. The № sign is on the ‘3’ key.

In Russia, the № sign is sometimes used in medical prescriptions. It shows the number of doses of medicine, like how many pills to take. It's also seen on price tags in pharmacies to show the number of items in a package.

Philippines Language Use

Because the Philippines was a Spanish colony for a long time, the word número (number) is found in almost all Philippine languages. "No." is a common way to write it in both local languages and English.

Indonesian and Malaysian Use

In Indonesian, the word for number is "nomor," and in Malaysian, it's "nombor." So, "No." is commonly used as a short form in these languages.

Using "Nr." Instead

In some languages, people use "Nr.", "nr.", "nr", or "NR" instead of the numero sign. This is usually a short form of their own word for 'number'. For example, in German, "Nummer" is shortened to "Nr.". In languages like Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Estonian, and Swedish, "nr." is often used.

How to Type the Numero Symbol

If you're using a typewriter or computer that doesn't have the numero sign, you can often just type "No." (a capital N, a lowercase o, and a period). This is a common way to replace it.

On some keyboards, you might be able to type "N°" (N followed by the degree symbol) or "Nº" (N followed by the masculine ordinal indicator). These can look similar to the numero sign, especially in print.

On Russian computer keyboards, the № character is usually found on the 3 key.

If you're using a Mac computer, you can sometimes type the character using Shift with certain keyboard settings.

On computers that use X11 (like many Linux systems), you can type it using a compose key with Compose, Shift, O. Or you can use a special Unicode input: Ctrl + Shift + u, then type 2, 1, 1, 6, and press Enter.

In Microsoft Windows and when writing for the web (using HTML), you can use special codes like № or № to make the numero sign appear.

Images for kids

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  A sign showing the less common Nͦ form in Italy.