Why a minute has 60 seconds?

There are 60 seconds in a minute and 60 minutes in an hour because ancient civilizations built their math and timekeeping systems around the number 60. This might seem unusual in a world used to base-10, but base-60 has some handy advantages.

Babylonians and base-60 time

Over 4,000 years ago, the Babylonians used a sexagesimal (base-60) number system. They favored 60 because it is highly divisible:

• 60 can be divided evenly by 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 12, 15, 20 and more
• This made fractions and measurements easier to work with

Their system influenced astronomy, navigation, and eventually the way we measure time.

Why we still use 60 today

Even though the metric system suggests decimals, time stayed base-60 because:

• Clocks and time standards were already built around 60
• Navigation and astronomy rely on it
• Changing global timekeeping would create huge confusion

So we keep using 60 seconds per minute and 60 minutes per hour, a tradition carried forward from ancient mathematics.

Need to convert between seconds, minutes, and hours? Use our time converter.