Elementary arithmetic, with brief notices of its history... by Robert Potts.

INTRODUCtION.

13

The Sanscrit language has independent names for the first seventeen orders of units in the decimal scale, 1, 10, 100, &c., the
seventeenth being the place of hundreds of thousands of billions in
the English mode of reckoning, which has only independent names
for the first five —namely, one, ten, hundred, thousand, million.
So large a vocabulary of names of the orders of units has no
parallel in any other language, ancient or modern; and this fact
affords a strong presumption of the high antiquity of the system of
notation by nine figures with "device of place." In any number
consisting of more figures than one, the place where no figure
belongs to it was shown by a blank, and to obviate mistake was
denoted by a dot or a small circle.
The stern and desolating wars which followed the rise of the
Mohammedan power in the seventh century, extended both to the
east and the west. Egypt, the chief seat of learning, was invaded
and conquered A.D. 640, and the famous library of Alexandria was
destroyed. The rapid conquests of the Arabian armies soon led to
the foundation of a powerful empire. The second Khalif Almansur
ascended the throne A.D. 753, and shortly after transferred the seat
of his government from Damascus to the newly-founded city of
Bagdad.
The Arabians became conversant with the arithmetical and astronomical science of the Hindus long before they had any knowledge of the
writings of the Greek mathematicians. The earliest notice is referred to
the second century of the Hegira, about A.D. 773, in the reign of Almansur, when an Hindu astronomer visited his court at Bagdad, bringing
with him a book of astronomical tables. The Khalif committed the
work to Alfazari to be translated, and to be published "for a guide
to the Arabians in matters pertaining to the stars." This version
was afterwards known by the name of "the Greater Sindhind," and
was in general use until the time of Almamun.
Haroun Alrashid, the grandson of Almansur, before his accession
to the Khalifat, had overrun the provinces of Asia Minor and advanced
as far as the Hellespont. The reigns of Alrashid and his successor,
Almamun, were distinguished at Bagdad by the highest degree of
luxury and splendour, which are displayed in many scenes of the
famous tales of the Arabian Nights' entertainment. Almamun
ascended the throne of the Khalifs A.D. 813.
It was the glory of his reign that he invited learned men from
different countries for the introduction of science and learning into his
dominions. Under his auspices and encouragement Arabic translations of Hindu and Greek science were undertaken. The few
manuscripts of the philosophical writings of the Greeks which had
escaped general ruin were diligently sought for and translated into
Arabic, and Arabic commentaries were written to elucidate and explain
these writings. By the desire of Almamun, before his accession to
the Khalifat an abridgment of the Greater Sindhind was made by
Mdohammed Ben Musa, which was thenceforward known by the title
of the Less Sindhind. That the Arabians derived their knowledge
of astronomy and arithmetic from the Hindus is asserted with the
universal consent of all Arabian authors from the time of Mohammed
Ben Musa. It is well known from various works in Arabic that
before the end of the tenth century the nine figures named.Hindasi,
from the country whence they had been derived, were in general use.