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Borrowed from Medieval Latinalgebra, from the Arabic word الْجَبْر(al-jabr, “reunion, resetting of broken parts”) in the title of al-Khwarizmi's influential work الْكِتَاب الْمُخْتَصَر فِي حِسَاب الْجَبْر وَالْمُقَابَلَة(al-kitāb al-muḵtaṣar fī ḥisāb al-jabr wa-l-muqābala, “The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing”).
1551, James A.H. Murray, editor, A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles: Founded Mainly on the Materials Collected by the Philological Society., volume 1, Oxford: Clarendon Press, published 1888, Part 1, page 217:
Also the rule of false position, with dyuers examples not only vulgar, but some appertaynyng to the rule of Algeber.
Let us conceive, then, of an Algebra in which the symbols x, y, z, &c. admit indifferently of the values 0 and 1, and of these values alone.
(uncountable,mathematics, sometimes capitalized)Abstract algebra: A broad field of study in modern mathematics (often mentioned alongside analysis) loosely characterized by its concern for abstraction and symmetry, dealing with the behavior, classification, and application of a large class of objects (called algebraic structures) and the maps between them (called, most generally, morphisms).
(figurative) A system or process (especially one that is complex or convoluted) that substitutes one thing for another, or uses signs or symbols to represent concepts or ideas.
1663, William Clark, edited by William Hugh Logan, Marciano; or, The discovery: A tragi-comedy, Edinburgh: Reprinted for Private Circulation, published 1871, →ISBN, page 13:
Fly ! Fly ! avaunt with that base cowardly gibbrish ; That Algebra of honour ; which had never Been nam'd, if all had equal courage—what?
a1420, The British Museum Additional MS, 12,056, “Wounds complicated by the Dislocation of a Bone”, in Robert von Fleischhacker, editor, Lanfranc's "Science of cirurgie.", London: K. Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co, translation of original by Lanfranc of Milan, published 1894, →ISBN, page 63:
Ne take noon hede to brynge togidere þe parties of þe boon þat is to-broken or dislocate, til viij. daies ben goon in þe wyntir, & v. in þe somer; for þanne it schal make quytture, and be sikir from swellynge; & þanne brynge togidere þe brynkis eiþer þe disiuncture after þe techynge þat schal be seid in þe chapitle of algebra.
1987, John Newsome Crossley, “Latency”, in The emergence of number, Singapore: World Scientific, →ISBN, Al-Khwarizwi, page 65:
Algebra is used today by surgeons to mean bone-setting, i.e. the restoration of bones, and the idea of restoration is present in the mathematical context, too.
“algebra”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish] (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-02
algebra in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (“The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language”, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
algebra in Nóra Ittzés, editor, A magyar nyelv nagyszótára [A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (Nszt.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2006–2031 (work in progress; published a–ez as of 2024).
algebra in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
Via other European languages, ultimately from Medieval Latinalgebra, from Arabicالْجَبْر(al-jabr, “reunion, resetting of broken parts”) in the title of al-Khwarizmi's influential work الْكِتَاب الْمُخْتَصَر فِي حِسَاب اَلْجَبْر وَالْمُقَابَلَة(al-kitāb al-muḵtaṣar fī ḥisāb al-jabr wa-l-muqābala, “The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing”).
^ Mirosław Bańko, Lidia Wiśniakowska (2021) “algebra”, in Wielki słownik wyrazów obcych, →ISBN
^ Bańkowski, Andrzej (2000) “algebra”, in Etymologiczny słownik języka polskiego [Etymological Dictionary of the Polish Language] (in Polish)
^ Barbara Rykiel-Kempf (06.05.2009) “ALGEBRA”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century]
Further reading
algebra in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh. All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.
References
Delyth Prys, J.P.M. Jones, Owain Davies, Gruffudd Prys (2006) Y Termiadur: termau wedi'u safoni; standardised terminology (in Welsh), Cardiff: Awdurdod cymwysterau, cwricwlwm ac asesu Cymru (Qualifications curriculum & assessment authority for Wales), →ISBN
R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “algebra”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies