Schools of numerology: history, differences, how to choose
There are several numerologies, linking numbers to letters, dates, and names: their origins, their differences, and the method used here.
By Thomas Guilhot · updated
The schools, one by one
- Pythagorean numerology
Pythagorean numerology gives each letter a value from 1 to 9, then adds them up. It is the most widespread in the West.
- Chaldean numerology
Chaldean numerology gives letters values from 1 to 8 and keeps the 9 apart, as a sacred number.
- Kabbalistic numerology
Two strands: gematria, which adds up the letters of Hebrew words, and a recent French method that draws one of 22 vibrations from the first name.
- Chinese numerology
In China, a number is judged mostly by what its pronunciation evokes: 8 recalls prosperity, 4 a word of bad omen.
- Tibetan numerology
Tibetan numerology is a modern method that arranges the digits of a date in a grid; its origin is not established.
- Tantric numerology
Tantric numerology is a modern label that associates numbers with Indian symbols. It is not a single method.
- Biblical numerology
Biblical numerology studies the symbolism of numbers in the Bible (7, 12, 40). It is a reading of texts, not the calculation of a date.
- Transgenerational numerology
Transgenerational numerology sets the births and first names of several generations side by side to spot recurring numbers: a symbolic reading, not psychological follow-up.
- The Destiny Matrix
A recent method, first spread in Russian by Natalia Ladini: it places the 22 major arcana of the tarot on an octagon drawn from the birth date. A reading close to numerology, reduced to 22 rather than 9.
The schools side by side
| School | Starts from | Letter values | Reduction | On this site |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pythagoreanmethod followed here | The birth name and the date | 1 to 9, in alphabetical order | Down to one digit; 11, 22, and 33 kept | All the tools |
| Chaldean | The name in everyday use | 1 to 8, by sound; 9 set apart | The compound number first, then one digit | Chaldean calculator |
| Kabbalistic | Hebrew words; the first name for the 22 vibrations | Hebrew, from 1 to 400; Pythagorean chart for the 22 vibrations | None in gematria; remainder of the division by 22 | 22 vibrations calculator |
| Chinese | The numbers themselves (sounds, Lo Shu square) | None: no alphabet | No systematic reduction | Explanation page |
| Tibetan | The digits of the birth date | None | The sum of the digits, then a grid | Explanation page |
| Tantric | The birth date | None | Down to one digit, then a symbol depending on the author | Explanation page |
| Biblical | The numbers in a text | None | No reduction; connections | Explanation page |
| Transgenerational | The dates and first names of a family | Letter chart from 1 to 9 | Down to one digit, then cross-checks | Explanation page |
Why several schools?
Ask three people to work out the number of the same first name, and you may get three results. That is not necessarily a calculation error: each of them may have learned a different tradition. Under the word “numerology” sit several practices, born in distant regions and eras, that do not all pursue the same goal.
Some schools turn letters into digits with a fixed table, like the Pythagorean tradition or the Chaldean one. Others rest on the original language: in Hebrew, each letter is also a number, which is the basis of gematria. Others still look at the sound of numbers, as in the Chinese tradition, where a phone number is chosen according to the words its pronunciation evokes. Finally, more recent approaches work with dates, family trees, or cycles.
Despite these differences, a common ground remains. All start from the idea that a number is not just a quantity: it carries a meaning, a quality, a rhythm. All also look for a way of putting order into experience, offering a language for reflecting on yourself. The pages below present each school on its own terms: its origin, what it calculates, what it claims, and the limits to keep in mind.
A brief history of numerology
Numbers were loaded with meaning long before anyone spoke of numerology. In Mesopotamia, scribes counted and observed the sky methodically, and in antiquity that legacy fed the reputation of the scholars known as Chaldeans. In Greece, the school claiming Pythagoras, in the 6th century BCE, saw the order of the world in the relationships between numbers. Little is known about Pythagoras himself, and nothing he may have written has survived.
Letters, for their part, served as numerals in several languages: in Greek as in Hebrew, alpha or aleph equal one, beta or bet equal two. This made it possible to compare words by their sum, a game found in Greek inscriptions and in Jewish commentaries. Medieval Kabbalah made it a method for reading sacred texts. Farther east, China developed its own links between numbers, the calendar, and divination.
In the Renaissance, European scholars gathered these legacies together. Then, around the start of the 20th century, notably in the United States, a modern numerology took shape: a simple table, reduction to a single digit, numbers calculated from the name as well as from the date. It borrows from all these sources without descending directly from them.
The method followed on this site
This site follows French Pythagorean numerology, based on Fermier (“ABC de la numérologie”), with two additions: the master number 33, which Fermier does not keep, and first names taken under both conventions (the first given name, then all given names, read separately). In practice: nine letter values, reduction of totals to a single digit while keeping 11, 22, and 33, and Y counted among the vowels.
This choice rests on its simplicity, its spread in French, and its consistency from one number to the next: the name and the date are read with the same tool. It does not mean the other schools are wrong. They answer other questions, with other rules, and you are free to explore them before deciding what speaks to you.
Frequently asked questions about numerology schools
What is the best school of numerology?
None comes out ahead in any demonstrated way: each school answers its own question. The Pythagorean suits a first name and a date, the Kabbalistic the study of Hebrew texts, the Chinese the choice of numbers. What helps most is knowing which method you are applying, and sticking with it from one calculation to the next.
What is the difference between Pythagorean and Chaldean numerology?
They do not use the same table. The Pythagorean has nine values, from 1 to 9, following the rank of the letters in the alphabet. The Chaldean runs from 1 to 8 and reserves the 9 for a separate role. The same first name can therefore end up with two different numbers, without either calculation being wrong.
Does numerology come from Pythagoras?
Not directly. Pythagoras and his disciples did see in numbers a key to harmony, but we have no writings of his. The table of letter values is attributed to Pythagoras by tradition, and its current form dates more likely from the 20th century.
Can you mix several schools of numerology?
It is better to avoid mixing them in a single calculation: the tables and reduction rules differ, and the result would no longer belong to any tradition. Nothing prevents you, however, from comparing them, provided you say each time which one you are applying.
Why do two numerologists give two different results?
Often, they are not applying the same convention. The differences come from the letter table, the choice of birth name or everyday name, the Y, or whether master numbers are kept. Before concluding there is an error, compare these points one by one.
Which school of numerology does this site follow?
This site applies a French Pythagorean numerology, based on Fermier. Two departures are deliberate: 33 stays a master number, which Fermier does not do, and first names are read both ways. For the rest, each total is brought down to a single digit, except 11, 22, and 33; as for the Y, it counts as a vowel. This is a choice of method, not a judgment on the other traditions, whose principles the neighboring pages present.