Ask any Indian schoolchild who invented zero, and the answer will usually be: India did. This is one of the most common beliefs taught in schools and repeated in public discussions. The pride behind this idea is understandable.
Zero is one of the greatest ideas in the history of mathematics. Without it, modern science, computers, engineering, and finance would not exist. India certainly made an important contribution to the story of zero. However, the real history is more complex than the simple claim that one civilisation invented it all.
To understand this history, we need to separate three different ideas: decimal counting, place-value notation, and zero. These ideas are connected, but they developed at different times and in different places.
Decimal counting
The first idea is decimal counting. This simply means counting in groups of ten. Humans probably developed this system because we have ten fingers. Ancient Indian texts such as the Rig Veda and the Yajur Veda show that Indians used a well-developed decimal counting system with names for very large numbers. However, India was not alone.
Greek inscriptions from around 550 BCE also used decimal counting, and Chinese records from about 1500 BCE show a similar system. Decimal counting appeared independently in many civilisations because it was a practical way to count large numbers. It cannot be credited to one country alone.
Place-value notation
The second idea is place-value notation. In this system, the position of a digit in a number determines its value. For example, the digit 1 can mean one, ten, or one hundred depending on where it appears. This method allows us to write very large numbers using only a few symbols.
Early Indian numerals, known as Brahmi numerals, did not use place value. They had separate symbols for numbers like 10, 20, and 100, much like Roman numerals. Evidence suggests that written place-value notation appeared in India around the third century CE.
The concept of using limited forms to create unlimited ideas starts with Panini (the ancient Sanskrit grammarian), who used limited syllables to create unlimited words. Likewise, the concept of using just ten numerals to create infinite numbers. This is a very powerful Indian idea – comfort with infinity (ananta) that both Greeks and Chinese feared.
Meanwhile, Chinese mathematicians had already developed a place-value system using counting rods by about 400 BCE. These rods were arranged so that their positions represented units, tens, hundreds, and thousands. Although this was not the same as the modern written numeral system, it showed that the basic idea of place value existed in China much earlier. This makes the history of place value more complicated than the simple claim that it was invented only in India.
The concept of zero
The third idea is zero itself. In a place-value system, there must be a way to show that a position is empty. Without such a symbol, numbers like 204 and 24 would look the same. This need led to the development of zero as a placeholder.
The oldest surviving inscription that clearly shows a zero symbol is not from India. It appears on a stone inscription in Cambodia dated to 683 CE, where zero is represented by a dot. Similar inscriptions have also been found in Indonesia from around the same time.
In India, the earliest undisputed inscription showing zero is from the the Chaturbhuj Temple in Gwalior, dated to 876 CE. Another important source is the Bakhshali manuscript, which also uses a dot for zero and is generally dated to around the seventh century CE, although scholars still debate its exact age.
India treated zero as a number
These discoveries have led some historians, including Joseph Needham and Lam Lay-Yong, to suggest an interesting idea. They argued that the written zero symbol may have developed in Southeast Asia, where Indian culture and Chinese mathematics met through trade and cultural exchange.
According to this view, Indian ideas about emptiness (Shunya) may have influenced the symbol, while Chinese place-value methods provided the mathematical need for it. Whether or not this theory is fully correct, it reminds us that knowledge often grows through contact between different cultures rather than through the work of one civilisation alone.
India’s greatest contribution came in another area. Indian mathematicians treated zero not just as an empty space but as a number with its own mathematical properties. They developed rules for using zero in calculations such as addition, subtraction, and multiplication. This was a major advance in mathematics.
The shared history of zero
These ideas later spread to the Islamic world, where Arab scholars studied and expanded them. From there, they reached Europe and eventually became part of the modern number system used across the world.
The history of zero is therefore not a story of one nation making a single discovery. It is the story of several civilizations building knowledge over many centuries. India played a vital role by developing the mathematics of zero and helping create the number system that transformed the world. That achievement is remarkable on its own. It does not need to be exaggerated to be appreciated.
(Devdutt is a renowned mythologist who writes on art, culture and heritage.)
Post read questions
1. India played a vital role by developing the mathematics of zero and helping create the number system that transformed the world. Comment.
2. The Bakhshali manuscript and the Gwalior inscription are of vital significance in the history of zero. Analyse their significance in understanding India’s contribution to the mathematics of zero.
3. The concept of using limited forms to create unlimited ideas that starts with Panini (the ancient Sanskrit grammarian) is a very powerful Indian idea – comfort with infinity (ananta) that both Greeks and Chinese feared. Discuss with reference to the mathematics of zero.
4. Some historians argue that the written zero symbol may have developed in Southeast Asia, where Indian culture and Chinese mathematics met through trade and cultural exchange. Explain.
5. Chinese counting-rod mathematics, Southeast Asian inscriptions and Indian mathematical thought together challenge linear narratives of scientific progress. Analyse.
Share your thoughts and ideas on UPSC Special articles with ashiya.parveen@indianexpress.com.
Click Here to read the UPSC Essentials magazine for July 2026. Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter and stay updated with the news cues from the past week.
Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – IndianExpress UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X.
In India, the earliest undisputed inscription showing zero is from the Chaturbhuj Temple in Gwalior, dated to 876 CE (left). (image sources: left, Wikimedia; right, file) 
Share
