Arithmetic or arithmetics (from the Greek word αριθμός = number) is the oldest and most elementary branch of mathematics, used by almost everyone, for tasks ranging from simple day-to-day counting to advanced science and business calculations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. In common usage, the word refers to a branch of (or the forerunner of) mathematics which records elementary properties of certain operations on nu...
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Arithmetic or arithmetics (from the Greek word αριθμός = number) is the oldest and most elementary branch of mathematics, used by almost everyone, for tasks ranging from simple day-to-day counting to advanced science and business calculations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. In common usage, the word refers to a branch of (or the forerunner of) mathematics which records elementary properties of certain operations on numbers. Professional mathematicians sometimes use the term (higher) arithmetic when referring to number theory, but this should not be confused with elementary arithmetic.
The prehistory of arithmetic is limited to a very small number of small artifacts indicating a clear conception of addition and subtraction, the best-known being the Ishango bone from central Africa, dating from somewhere between 20,000 and 18,000 BC.
It is clear that the Babylonians had solid knowledge of almost all aspects of elementary arithmetic by 1800 BC, although...
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