The concept at the heart of numerology is called “numerological reduction“. It’s how we turn complex names, numbers and dates into simple, 1-digit numbers that carry a message or an inner meaning.
How any number in numerology is calculated is a simple process that you can learn to do yourself in a couple of minutes, and it doesn’t require any math skills other than simple addition.
In the next 3 minutes you’ll learn how to turn any name, date or large number into a simple numerology number. Let’s get started.
What is numerology reduction?
Simply put, numerological reduction is the process of turning big numbers or words into smaller, more meaningful numbers.
- A year like 2021 can be reduced to the single-digit number: 5
- A postal code like 90027 can be reduced to the single-digit number: 9
- A day like December 8, 2021 can be reduced to a single-digit number: 7
How does this work? It works by a process of simple addition. You don’t need to be good at math to do it yourself.
How to perform a numerology calculation
Let’s start with the year 2021 because it’s the simplest of the examples above. The process works like this:
Just add each digit together like this:
2 + 0 + 2 + 1 = 5
So in numerological terms, the year 2021 can be represented by the core number 5. Remember, in numerology, single-digit numbers are extremely important. They’re the core numbers that make up the entire universe. Each single-digit number has it’s own “personality” — it’s own properties, and characteristics.
When we analyze a large number, name or date in numerology we are trying to get to a small number so we can better understand the properties of the large number.
Another numerology calculation example
Let’s take a slightly more interesting example: The postal code 90027 above.
As you can see, when we add it up, we actually get a 2-digit number and not a single-digit number:
9 + 0 + 0 + 2 + 7 = 18
Because our addition ended up with a result larger than 1-digit, we simply repeat the process:
1+ 8 = 9
No we have our final result! The zip code 90027 can be reduced to the numerology number 9.
How to perform a numerology calculation on a date
Now that we’ve got the really easy examples out of the way, let’s do a very common numerological calculation: Reducing a calendar date.
Reducing a calendar date can be very important for gaining insight into the forces which affect a day of the year, or any date in history.
The numerology reduction process is the same as above, but the month must be converted to a number 1 through 12 before starting.
So the date December 8, 2021 becomes: 12/8/2021 (or 8/12/2021 if you’re most places outside the USA. The order of the day and month doesn’t matter.)
Pay special attention to the way we perform a calculation for a 2-digit month and a 4-digit year first, before adding everything together.
(1+2) + 8 + (2 + 0 + 2 + 1)
or
3 + 8 + 5 = 16
Now we just need to further reduce that 2-digit result….
1 +6 = 7
And there we have it! December 8, 2021 reduces to the numerology number 7.
Believe it or not, we’re really almost done. You now you have the basics of most of numerology. But … you’re probably wondering: What about words and names?
How to calculate names in numerology
Reducing names to numbers in numerology uses a very similar process of reduction. The first thing to understand is that every letter has a numerological value.
What’s the value of each letter? It’s simply the order in which it appears in the alphabet.
- A is 1
- B is 2
- C is 3
etc.
When the letter’s number reaches 2-digits we simply reduce the 2 digit number using the system above.
- J is 10, which reduces to 1
- K is 11, which reduces to 2
- L is 12, which reduces to 3
etc.
To make things easier, here’s a complete table of all of the numerological values of each letter.
Numerology values for each letter in the alphabet
A | 1 |
B | 2 |
C | 3 |
D | 4 |
E | 5 |
F | 6 |
G | 7 |
H | 8 |
I | 9 |
J | 1 |
K | 2 |
L | 3 |
M | 4 |
N | 5 |
O | 6 |
P | 7 |
Q | 8 |
R | 9 |
S | 1 |
T | 2 |
U | 3 |
V | 4 |
W | 5 |
X | 6 |
Y | 7 |
Z | 8 |
Remember, when calculating multiple words or names, reduce each word to a single digit separately before adding them all together.
Numerology name calculation example
So let’s say we want to reduce the name Martin Luther King to a single digit number.
Our basic roadmap looks like this:
(M + A + R + T + I + N) +
(L + U + T + H + E + R) +
(K + I + N + G)
By assigning numbers to letters using the table above, we get:
(4 + 1 + 9 + 2 + 9 + 5) +
(3 + 3 + 2 + 8 + 5 + 9) +
(2 + 9 + 5 + 7)
So first we add up each name and we get:
30 + 30 + 23
And then we perform numerological reduction on each of those 2-digit number:
(3 + 0) + (3+0) + (2 + 3)
Which brings us to:
3 + 3 + 5 = 11
And then… we stop. The answer is 11.
Wait. You’re probably thinking: Don’t we add 1 + 1 and get 2?
Normally, the answer would be “Yes, keep reducing”. But we just hit our first “special case”. 11 isn’t like other numbers. It’s special. Here’s where we have to introduce one final concept: Master Numbers.
What are Master Numbers?
When reducing any number in numerology, we keep reducing until we hit a single digit number — EXCEPT when we hit one of 3 special 2-digit “Master Numbers”.
In the above case, the number 11 is a “Master Number” and doesn’t get reduced any more.
Master numbers are very rare and very special. These angelic numbers don’t get reduced further. They actually stay as 2-digit numbers.
The master numbers are:
- 11
- 22
- 33
In the example above, we could have kept going and reduced Martin Luther King’s name to 2 … but we hit the Master Number 11 along the way and that means it’s time to stop. This is a special name indeed. The numerological reduction of the name Martin Luther King is 11, not 2.
Do you have any master numbers in your own numerology profile? Try a free numerology report and see what numbers lie hidden in your name and birthdate.
Now you know the basics of numerological calculation.
Now you know everything you need to know to convert any number, date or name into a smaller, core number using the concepts of numerological reduction.
And you also know when to stop reducing, in the event you hit one of the three Master Numbers.
So now you’re probably wondering — but what do all these numbers actually mean?
That rabbit hole goes very, very deep: There are Destiny numbers, Life Path numbers, Soul Urge numbers, Hidden Desire numbers and much, much more.
A great place to start is by analyzing your own name and birth date and seeing what your numerological “DNA” looks like.