Talk:Algebra

Did you know nomination

The following is an archived discussion of the DYK nomination of the article below. Please do not modify this page. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as this nomination's talk page, the article's talk page or Wikipedia talk:Did you know), unless there is consensus to re-open the discussion at this page. No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was: promoted by Hilst talk 13:35, 2 April 2024 (UTC)

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• Comment or view
• Article history

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• ... that elementary algebra generalizes arithmetic while abstract algebra generalizes elementary algebra? Source:
  • ALT1: ... that algebraic methods were already studied in the ancient period even though an abstract symbolic notation was not developed until the 16th and 17th centuries? Source:
  • ALT2: ... that the word algebra originates from an Arabic term for the surgical treatment of bonesetting? Source:
  • Reviewed: Template:Did you know nominations/Alfred de Laage de Meux
  • Comment:

Citations

References

Sources

• Maddocks, J. R. (2008). "Algebra". In Lerner, Brenda Wilmoth; Lerner, K. Lee (eds.). The Gale Encyclopedia of Science (4th ed.). Thompson Gale. ISBN 978-1-4144-2877-2. Archived from the original on 2024-01-12. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
• Pratt, Vaughan (2022). "Algebra". The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. Archived from the original on 29 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
• Wagner, Sigrid; Kieran, Carolyn (2018). Research Issues in the Learning and Teaching of Algebra: The Research Agenda for Mathematics Education, Volume 4. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-43421-2. Archived from the original on 2024-01-12. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
• Tanton, James (2005). Encyclopedia of Mathematics. Facts On File. ISBN 978-0-8160-5124-3.
• Kvasz, L. (2006). "The History of Algebra and the Development of the Form of Its Language". Philosophia Mathematica. 14 (3). doi:10.1093/philmat/nkj017.
• Merzlyakov, Yu. I.; Shirshov, A. I. (2020). "Algebra(2)". Encyclopedia of Mathematics. Springer. Archived from the original on 7 April 2023. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
• Corry, Leo (2024). "Algebra". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 19 January 2024. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
• Cresswell, Julia (2010). Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-954793-7. Archived from the original on 2024-01-27. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
• OUP Staff. "Algebra". Lexico. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2013-11-20.

Improved to Good Article status by Phlsph7 (talk). Self-nominated at 12:39, 17 March 2024 (UTC).

Number of QPQs required: 1. Nominator has 18 past nominations.

Post-promotion hook changes will be logged on the talk page; consider watching the nomination until the hook appears on the Main Page.

General: Article is new enough and long enough
New enough: Long enough:

Policy: Article is sourced, neutral, and free of copyright problems
Adequate sourcing: Neutral: Free of copyright violations, plagiarism, and close paraphrasing:

Hook: Hook has been verified by provided inline citation
Cited: Interesting:

QPQ: Done.

Overall: Looks good! Article was nominated within 7 days of achieving Good Article status. Article is over 1500 words of prose. I found no problems with sourcing. Earwig picked up an unlikely violation of 23.1%. AGF on print sources. ALT2 seems to be the most accessible to people since ALT0 and ALT1 rely on technical knowledge in algebra. Nominator only has 18 nominations and does not need a 2nd QPQ at this time (20 nominations required). lullabying (talk) 05:14, 25 March 2024 (UTC)

Somma di arithmetica

@Bjørn Leon Søren Riedel Thank you for your contribution, but I've undone your edit for two reasons. One is that this is word-for-word from the source. Even if the source is public domain, you should still either summarize what it says in your own words, or present it as a direct quote with attribution. The other problem is that claims of something being "the first" or "the earliest" are hard to be sure of and often turn out to be incorrect. I note that Christies, when they sold a copy of this book, said "is often regarded as the first printed book on algebra", which is a much more justifiable statement than unequivocally calling it "the earliest". RoySmith (talk) 15:54, 8 August 2024 (UTC)

Another potential problem is that the source for this claim is almost 150 years old. Maybe this view was accepted back then but contemporary scholarship presents a very different picture. Phlsph7 (talk) 16:01, 8 August 2024 (UTC)

Thank you very much for your comment. I appreciate the critique. Bjørn Leon Søren Riedel (talk) 12:42, 4 July 2025 (UTC)

Why is woman who developed algebra not mentioned?

Daughter of Algebria ~2026-67780-8 (talk) 23:17, 31 January 2026 (UTC)

A web search for that phrase turns up a BBC television special about Maryam Mirzakhani. Mirzakhani did great work, but it's not necessarily closer to "algebra" per se than to other branches of mathematics, and I don't think is particularly noteworthy to mention in an article of such broad scope. Or did you have some other person in mind? –jacobolus (t) 23:51, 31 January 2026 (UTC)