Chisanbop or chisenbop (from Korean ''chi (ji)'' finger + ''sanpŏp (sanbeop)'' calculation 지산법/指算法), sometimes called Fingermath, is a

finger counting Finger-counting, also known as dactylonomy, is the act of counting using one's fingers. There are multiple different systems used across time and between cultures, though many of these have seen a decline in use because of the spread of Arabic nu ...

method used to perform basic

math Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

ematical operations. According to ''The Complete Book of Chisanbop'' by Hang Young Pai, chisanbop was created in the 1940s in

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

by Sung Jin Pai and revised by his son Hang Young Pai, who brought the system to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1977. With the ''chisanbop'' method it is possible to represent all numbers from 0 to 99 with the hands, rather than the usual 0 to 10, and to perform the addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of numbers. The system has been described as being easier to use than a physical abacus for students with visual impairments.

Basic concepts

Each finger has a value of one, while the thumb has a value of five. Therefore each hand can represent the digits 0-9, rather than the usual 0-5. The two hands combine to represent two digits; the right hand is the ones place, and the left hand is the tens place. This way, any number from 0 to 99 can be shown, and it's possible to count up to 99 instead of just 10. The hands can be held above a table, with the fingers pressing down on the table; or the hands can simply be held up, fingers extended, as with the more common practice of 0-10 counting.

Adoption in the United States

Chisanbop can be used for teaching math, or simply for counting. The results for teaching math have been mixed. A school in Shawnee Mission, Kansas, ran a pilot program with students in 1979. It was found that although they could add large numbers quickly, they could not add them in their heads. The program was dropped. Grace Burton of the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

said, "It doesn't teach the basic number facts, only to count faster. Adding and subtracting quickly are only a small part of mathematics."

References

External links

Interactive demonstration of ChisenbopInstructable: How to count higher than 10 on your fingers, step 3: Chisenbop
{{Gestures Abacus Finger-counting

Basic concepts

Adoption in the United States

See also

References

Further reading

External links