The History of Maths

Early Civilisations

The ancient Egyptians (3rd millenium BC), Sumerians (2000- 1500 BC), and Chinese (1500 BC) had systems for writing down numbers and could perform calculations using various types of abacus.

The Egyptians were able to solve many different kinds of practical mathematical problems, ranging from surveying fields after the annual floods to making the intricate calculations necessary to build the pyramids.

Egyptian arithmetic, based on counting in groups of ten, was relatively simple. This Base-10 system probably arose for biological reasons, we have 8 fingers and 2 thumbs. Numbers are sometimes called digits from the Latin word for finger. Unlike our familiar number system, which is both decimal and positional (23 is not the same as 32), the Egyptians' arithmetic was not positional but additive.

Unlike the Egyptians, the Babylonians of ancient Mesopotamia (now Iraq) developed a more sophisticated base-10 arithmetic that was positional, and they kept mathematical records on clay tablets. The most remarkable feature of Babylonian arithmetic was its use of a sexagesimal (base 60) place-valued system in addition to a decimal system. Thus the Babylonians counted in groups of sixty as well as ten. Babylonian mathematics is still used to tell time - an hour consists of 60 minutes, and each minute is divided into 60 seconds - and circles are measured in divisions of 360 degrees.