🌍 Language & Etymology
The Man Behind the Word Algorithm
Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, Al-Kitāb al-mukhtaṣar fī ḥisāb al-jabr wal-muqābala
Epigram Literary Guild@epigram_editorial•2 min read
A Scholar in Baghdad1 / 3
In the ninth century, Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi worked in Baghdad, a great centre of learning. He wrote influential books on arithmetic and on solving equations step by step.
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Some of the most modern words have very old roots.
From al-jabr to Algebra2 / 3
One of his books had al-jabr in its title, an Arabic term for restoring or completing, used for a step in solving equations. In Latin translations it became algebra, the name of a whole branch of mathematics.
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A single book title can become the name of an entire field.
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