algorithm English · revision 10498

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1699|origins=fr algorithme|origins=la-med algorismus|origins=ar الخوارزمي}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈælɡəɹɪðm̩/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is from French algorithme, refashioned under a mistaken connection with Greek [[m|grc|ἀριθμός|tr=arithmós|t=number]] (see [[arithmetic]]),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(NODE 1998) from Old French algorisme, the Arabic numeral system,^(Etymonline) from Medieval Latin algorismus,^(Etymonline)^(NODE 1998) a mangled transliteration of Arabic [[m|ar|الخوارزمي|tr=al-Khwārizmī|t=native of Khwarazm]], the surname of the 9th-century mathematician whose works introduced advanced mathematics to the West (see [[algebra]]).^(Etymonline) It is also an English alteration of the earlier [[algorism]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The Arabic system of computation, the decimal notation of numbers: 1699, the 1690s in Etymonline.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A procedure or set of rules for calculation or problem-solving is from the early 19th century in the SOED,^(SOED 2002) and in mathematics, a process expressed in algebraic notation, from 1938.^(OED 1989) From the mid-20th century it is used especially in computing.^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) In medicine, a step-by-step procedure for a clinical decision is from 1968.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 13th century – algorisme (Old French).^(Etymonline)

+ * 1699 – Arabic computation.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * early 19th century – a set of rules.^(SOED 2002)

+ * 1938 – a mathematical algorithm.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1968 – a clinical algorithm.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A step-by-step procedure or set of rules for solving a problem or carrying out a calculation, especially by a [[computer]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(mathematics)'' A recursive procedure for generating a sequence of terms.^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[algorithmic]]

+ * [[algorithmically]]

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+ ==Related words==

+ * [[algebra]]

+ * [[algorism]]

+ * [[arithmetic]]

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+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}