The Sumerians looked to the heavens as they pioneered the system of timekeeping, a legacy still in use today. One might wonder why we divide hours into 60 minutes and days into 24 hours, rather than using a base-10 or base-12 system. The reason lies in the Sumerians' adoption of a sexagesimal (base-60) system, which suited their understanding of celestial movements.
To the ancient Sumerian innovators, 60 was an ideal number because it could be evenly divided by 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 12, 15, 20, and 30—providing versatility in measurement. Furthermore, early astronomers estimated there were 360 days in a year, neatly dividing into 60 six times. Although the Sumerian Empire eventually faded, their method of timekeeping has endured for over 5,000 years, shaping how we perceive and measure time.
