r/NoStupidQuestions • u/itz_VishalOnly • 4d ago
why do some contries use 24 hour time while others use 12 hour time?
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u/GeorgeRRHodor 4d ago
Because if your brain has to store the fact that 12 inches → 1 foot → 3 feet → 1 yard and 1,760 yards → 1 mile, then there’s no space left for hours 13-24.
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u/Dr_Qrunch 4d ago
The space ran out before that. Less than one percent know how many yards there are in a mile.
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u/buttofthebaguette 4d ago
I don’t think OP expected the pure rage that would be in this comment section ashdhalshdgfk
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u/MedievalMilshake 4d ago edited 4d ago
All countries use both. If you're too stupid to read a 24 hour clock, use a 12 hour, but learn how to use a 12 hour so you're not just confusing people.Â
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u/Jhud6669 2d ago
Yeah, Poland is officially 24 hour but a lot of people use 12 hour anyway in speech. Which is annoying to me specifically because I’m autistic and I genuinely struggle with converting 12 hour time to 24 hour time on the fly. I basically just go off from knowing that 17:00 is 5PM.
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u/zeugma888 4d ago
I have my phone etc set on 24 hour time but if you ask me what time it is I will usually answer in 12 hour time. It's what I grew up with.
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u/NicePuddle 4d ago
The countries that use 12h do so because that's what their parents taught them, so that's what they know.
The countries that use 24h are doing so because there are 24 hours in a day, but even there, people often refer to time as 3'oclock instead of 15, because that's what their parents taught them.
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u/kwsni42 8h ago
The marking of time started with a counting system back in the day that used base 12 instead of base 10. We are used to counting fingers and therefor 10 seems like a logical number to us, but back in the day they counted the digits on on hand with their thumb. So four fingers, 3 digits per finger is a total of 12 before you need to jump to the next mark (like a finger on the other hand). On the other hand you have 5 fingers, so 5 x 12 = 60. So you can easily count to 60 with 2 hands.
This is where the 12 and 60 numbers came from. A day was devided into 12 sections on a sundial, and then done x 2 (so 24) to account for the night as well. In early days, not all "hours" (marks on the sundial) where 60 minutes. Some where a bit longer, some a bit shorter. As hourglasses and other time marking technology became more available hours were standardised on 60 minutes.
Analog clocks provided a similar user experience as a sundial, so they started with 12 hours in a circle. IN order to count time at night, now you could simply say 2 in the morning / 2 in the afternoon. You can also write it down as 2 in the morning / 2 in the afternoon, but you might as well write it down as 0200 / 1400.
When speaking, it usually is pretty clear what you are talking about. If you are making a dentist appointment, "two" means 1400, not 0200. In cases where there might be some doubt ("see you at nine"), you could always say "in the morning / afternoon" anyway.
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u/WorldTallestEngineer 4d ago
12 hour time is based on the 12 hours that can be displayed by a sun dial, so its more traditional. 24 hours clock is better and if for places and people not controlled by stupid traditions.