entry
algorithm
/ˈælɡəˌrɪðəm/Finite step-by-step method for solving problems
From Arabic al (the definite article) + Arabic/Persian proper name khwarizmi (of Khwarazm).
from Medieval Latin algorismus , a mangled transliteration of Arabic al-Khwarizmi "native of Khwarazm" (modern Khiva in...
from Old French algorisme "the Arabic numeral system" (13c.)
from French algorithme , refashioned (under mistaken connection with Greek arithmos "number")
from French algorithme , refashioned (under mistaken connection with Greek arithmos "number")
Word Ancestry
from Medieval Latin algorismus , a mangled transliteration of Arabic al-Khwarizmi "native of Khwarazm" (modern Khiva in...
from Old French algorisme "the Arabic numeral system" (13c.)
from French algorithme , refashioned (under mistaken connection with Greek arithmos "number")
from French algorithme , refashioned (under mistaken connection with Greek arithmos "number")
A whole branch of modern life is named after a person most people have never heard of. In the 800s, the scholar al-Khwarizmi worked in the world of Arabic mathematics, and medieval scribes later mangled his name into Latin as algorismus. Then French speakers, seeing a familiar-looking echo of Greek arithmos, gave it a makeover and produced algorithme — a classic case of etymology wearing a fake mustache. That same scholarly traffic also helped drag Arabic numerals into Europe, so every time we talk about an algorithm, we’re echoing the road from Khwarazm to the desktop. It’s a wonderfully human word: a name for a person became a term for a counting method, and then for the invisible little recipe that tells your phone what to do next. Not bad for a sentence that started as someone’s surname.
The Story
A whole branch of modern life is named after a person most people have never heard of. In the 800s, the scholar al-Khwarizmi worked in the world of Arabic mathematics, and medieval scribes later mangled his name into Latin as algorismus. Then French speakers, seeing a familiar-looking echo of Greek arithmos, gave it a makeover and produced algorithme — a classic case of etymology wearing a fake mustache. That same scholarly traffic also helped drag Arabic numerals into Europe, so every time we talk about an algorithm, we’re echoing the road from Khwarazm to the desktop. It’s a wonderfully human word: a name for a person became a term for a counting method, and then for the invisible little recipe that tells your phone what to do next. Not bad for a sentence that started as someone’s surname.
Kin & Kindred
From 'al'·the definite article, 'the'
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'khwarizmi'·of Khwarazm; the mathematician al-Khwarizmi
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary