Definition of tot up

The term "tot up" originates from the centuries-old practice of tallying accounts using sticks, also known as tally sticks. These sticks, made from wood or some other material, were used to keep track of debts, expenses, and other financial transactions. Each tally stick represented a specific amount, and additional sticks were added to increment the total value. The process of adding these sticks together was called 'totting up,' a term that eventually made its way into the English language as a colloquial expression for calculating the sum of a collection of numbers. The first known use of the term 'tot up' is dated back to the mid-1800s, and it has since become an informal and widely recognized term in everyday language, especially in reference to counting or calculating amounts. In summary, 'tot up' derives from the practice of adding tally sticks to calculate sums during ancient accounting methods, and over time, the term has evolved to describe the act of calculating or summarizing a series of numbers.