There are many views on the origin of 360 degrees, including two main views.
1. Related to the ephemeris
In ancient times, people used the Sun, Moon, stars and other natural phenomena to measure time and create calendars.
The Sumerians observed the Sun, Moon and five visible planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn), mainly for omens.
The number 360 was probably chosen because it was the number of days in the year for ancient people.
2. Related to base 60
In the early days, people often used their fingers to count, so the number base was 10, called the decimal system.
But in ancient times, some civilizations used 60 as the base, called the hexadecimal system (Base 60 numbering system).
The reason why 60 is used instead of other numbers may be because 60 is a relatively small number and can be divided into 10 real factors of 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 12, 15
In addition, using base 60 is also convenient for drawing with rulers and rulers.
As Greek geometry developed, it created the concept of angles and degrees.
The base 60 counting method was later spread to Europe by the Arabs, eventually becoming the mainstream method, currently widely used in time, angles, geographical coordinates and other fields.
Around 300 to 100 BC, the Babylonians broke down hours into base-60 fractions: 60 minutes in an hour and 60 seconds in a minute.
The reason why the circle’s circumference is 360 degrees instead of 60 degrees is probably because the ancients discovered that there are exactly 6 equilateral triangles with side lengths being the radius of the circle and the angles of the equilateral triangle are also 60 degrees.
One degree is divided into 60 minutes, and one minute into 60 seconds.
Therefore, using 360 degrees to represent an angle is more convenient than 100, because it can be divided into many different angles and these angles are all integers, making calculations more convenient and reducing the possibility of errors.
In short, the origin of 360 degrees as an angular unit can be traced back to ancient civilizations, it has advantages and meanings in many aspects such as history, culture, technology and mathematics.
Although the number 100 is simpler, it does not meet these requirements well, so 360 degrees has become a commonly used unit of angle measurement.
