etymology - 19th century English texts occasionally use Germanic-style number words, such as "four-and-twenty". When did this fall out of use?


19th century English texts occasionally use Germanic-style number words, such as "four-and-twenty", but the same text would also have the modern "twenty-four" in places (see e.g. Conan-Doyle for several examples).


How did the usage of germanic-style numbers change historically? When did the Germanic forms fall out of use?


(I have asked this question previously on Sprachlog (German) and got a short answer by A.Stefanowitsch, but would appreciate any additional input.)




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