Full Idea
Dedekind and Peano define the number series as the series of successors to the number zero, according to five postulates.
Gist of Idea
Numbers have been defined in terms of 'successors' to the concept of 'zero'
Source
report of Giuseppe Peano (works [1890]) by Simon Blackburn - Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy p.279
Book Reference
Benardete,José A.: 'Metaphysics: The Logical Approach' [OUP 1989], p.279