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Every country has a different way of doing things in language, culture, and politics. We're sure if you've traveled anywhere, you know that countries also have a different way of measuring things such as time and lengths. For example, the metric system, customary units, 12-hour time, and 24-hour time.
Why does the concept of time and measurements need to be different? Let's find out why and what countries use 24-hour time.
What is 24 Hour Time?
24-hour time is another system for telling time like the 12-hour clock and it goes from midnight to midnight (0:00-24:00). While the 12-hour clock runs for 24 hours and divides the day into two parts: am and pm. In 24-hour time numbers that are less than 10 are written with a zero in front of them; 04:00 would be 4:00 am. Numbers that are greater than 9 are written in sequential order (10,11,12,13,14...); 13:00 would be 1:00 pm, 14:00 is 2:00 pm, and so on. The sequential count ends at 24:00 or 0:00 or midnight.
This system has a couple of different names around the world. The United States refers to it as military time. It was also called railway and continental time in Europe, though that term is outdated. Nowadays, it's referred to as the international standard notion of time.
How To Convert 24-Hour Time
Converting to 24-hour time if you are used to using the 12-hour time can be confusing at first. With the internet, it takes about two seconds to convert the time. If you're more of a mental math person, here are a few tricks.
- 12:00 am to 12:59 am, subtract 12
- 1:00 am to 12:59 pm is the same as 12-hour time no converting necessary
- 1:00 pm to 11:59 pm, add 12
What's the Purpose of 24-Hour Time?
24-hour time is the most common time system used in the world. But why do countries gravitate to this system over the 12-hour clock? Well, it's definitely more precise.
If you think about it, 12-hour time can be confusing because the same numbers are used no matter what time of the day. For example, 4:00 could mean morning or night unless you specify with am or pm. This could be dangerous for the medical field, the military, and air traffic. If you are a nurse and the paperwork says the patient received their medication at 3:00, you wouldn't know if that was am or pm.
Another advantage of 24-hour time is that you don't have to figure out if it's noon or midnight.
Countries That Use 24-Hour Time
Non-English speaking countries in Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa primarily use 24-hour time.
You can see it on public transportation schedules, business hours, road signs, and TV programming. In countries like Germany and France, use it in spoken and written language. However, non-English speaking countries don't have an issue using 12-hour time either. It can be used interchangeably in spoken language to tell time.
English-speaking countries usually switch back and forth between 24-hour and 12-hour time because no system is established. The United States heavily relies on the 12-hour time except for the military. Canada, the UK, and Australia prefer to use the 24-hour time.
