Algebras
/ˈæl.dʒɪ.brəz/noun
Plural of algebra, referring to mathematical systems for representing and solving relationships using symbols and rules.
Did you know?The term comes from a medieval Arabic treatise whose title described “restoring” missing quantities, while the same Arabic root was also associated with setting broken bones.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
j-b-r
“A root associated with making firm, restoring, or compelling”
9th Century
Arabic
al-jabr
“Restoration or reunion of separated parts”
820 CE
Arabic
al-jabr wa’l-muqābala
““The restoration and balancing,” the title of al-Khwarizmi’s influential mathematical treatise”
12th Century
Medieval Latin
algebra
“A Latinized form of the Arabic mathematical term”
16th Century
English
algebra
“The mathematical art of solving equations using symbols”
Modern English
English
algebras
“Plural of algebra; multiple abstract mathematical systems”