Teens and Twenties

[Waruno Mahdi]

Javanese has _likur_ to form the "twenteens" (i.e. the numerals from 21
till 29), e.g. _se-likur_ '21', _ro-likur_ '22', _telu-likur_ '23', etc.
The usage is already attested in Old Javanese. It has apparently been
taken over from Javanese into the neighbouring Balinese and Madurese.

The protoform is PAN *likuD '(the) back', cf. Katatipol-Puyuma _rikuz-an_
'behind', Cebuano _likOd_ '(the) back' (O = o-acute), Ngaju _ba-rikor_
'on the back'.
The popular (folk-etymological) explanation current among Javanese I asked
(long time ago) was that one counts the teens while holding the hands up
front, and 21 till 29 with the hands held behind the back. I didn't find
this particularly logical at that time (nor any more so now), but that's
the explanation I always got when I asked.
It is possible that the actual source was that the notion of a back here
served to represent that of the body. But whether that really was so,
your guess is as good as mine.

Aloha,  Waruno

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