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Where does the word "mathematics" come from? It comes from Greek mathēmatikē, and was adopted directly into English (1580s).
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Where does the word "mathematics" come from? It comes from Greek mathēmatikē, and was adopted directly into English (1580s).
Mathematics’s story begins in Greek: mathēmatikē meant “science of learning.” Greek, from 'manthanein', to learn. It reached English by 1580s as mathematics. 'maths' and 'math' are 1900s abbreviations. Today, mathematics means the science of number and space.
- Stage 1 · Greek · ancient mathēmatikē "science of learning", Greek, from 'manthanein', to learn.
- Stage 2 · English · 1580s mathematics "mathematics", 'maths' and 'math' are 1900s abbreviations.