Answer:When we convert a decimal number to octal, we divide the number by 8 because octal is base-8. Every time we divide, we take the remainder and keep it. Then we divide the quotient again by 8, and keep repeating the process until the quotient becomes 0.After that, we write the remainders in reverse order, and that gives us the final octal number.So the reason we divide by 8 is because we're changing from base-10 (decimal) to base-8 (octal).