Super Bowl week is back, which means Roman numerals are once again at the forefront of the public consciousness. As one of the only institutions that still uses Roman numerals, the NFL's choice brings certain level of ceremony to each Super Bowl.

Super Bowl LIX kicks off on Sunday. What number is that, though? Here's how to use Roman numerals and why the NFL uses them for the championship game.

The use of Roman numerals did not become an NFL tradition until Super Bowl V in 1971. The first two Super Bowls were known as the AFL-NFL world Championship Game. The name “Super Bowl” was officially adopted for the third annual game and the league retroactively added Roman numerals to the Super Bowls before 1971.

Since early in the game’s history, the NFL has labeled almost every Super Bowl with a Roman numeral (more on that later) to designate where each matchup falls chronologically. But the numerals are more than just a stylistic choice — they’re actually used to provide a little clarity, according to the NFL.

It’s the thing that comes up every darn year: the number of the Super Bowl is written in Roman numerals, which is quite the tradition. But if you’re here, you might be wondering: how do you read Roman numerals in the first place?

The use of Roman numerals in the event's name is a tradition that dates back more than fifty years. It serves both practical and aesthetic purposes. It began in 1971 when the Baltimore Ravens (then named the Colts) beat the Dallas Cowboys 16-13 to win the 1970 season. That game took the official name of Super Bowl V, which means Super Bowl 5.

The Super Bowl's tradition of using Roman numerals to mark the league's showpiece event is a tradition that spans over 50 years.

For nearly 60 years, the Super Bowl has become a central part of American culture well beyond the sphere of pro football. And for many, the Super Bowl also prompts the need to touch up on a certain other piece of culture that always re-enters the collective conscience around Super Bowl time.

The then-owner of the Kansas City Chiefs, Lamar Hunt, who also named the Super Bowl, added the idea of using Roman numerals to highlight the grandeur of the event. They retroactively named Super Bowls I to IV, and every super bowl since has used them, except for one. The game in 2016 was called Super Bowl 50.