The Origins of Algorithm: Discover through the genius of Al-Khwarizmi—whose 9th-century insights still power our digital world today. From equations to computing, his legacy lives on.
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The Origins of Algorithm
How a 9th-century scholar shaped the digital world we live in today.
When we hear the word algorithm, we often think of social media feeds, Google searches, and artificial intelligence. But this now-ubiquitous term owes its name—and much of its foundational logic—to a brilliant Persian scholar who lived over 1,200 years ago: Muḥammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī.
Al-Khwarizmi lived and worked in Baghdad during the Islamic Golden Age, a time of immense intellectual flourishing. He was a scholar at the House of Wisdom, a legendary academy of knowledge where texts from Greece, India, Persia, and beyond were translated, preserved, and expanded upon. It was there that Al-Khwarizmi wrote his most influential work:
📘 The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing.
In this book, Al-Khwarizmi introduced systematic ways of solving linear and quadratic equations—using logic and geometric reasoning rather than abstract symbols. One of the core forms he explored was:
x² + ax = b
He explained how to manipulate and "restore" such equations by moving terms from one side to the other and completing the square—a method still taught today in high school math classrooms.
The word "algebra" itself comes from the Arabic word "al-jabr" (الجبر), which means “restoration”—one of the steps Al-Khwarizmi described in solving equations. His approach was methodical, clear, and generalizable. That’s what made it revolutionary.
As his works were translated into Latin in the 12th century, Al-Khwarizmi’s influence began to spread across Europe. His name—rendered as Algoritmi—eventually gave us the word “algorithm”, now one of the most important concepts in modern computing, data science, and AI.
💡 Why It Matters Today
Al-Khwarizmi's legacy is not just mathematical. He represents a moment in history when curiosity, translation, and collaboration across cultures advanced human understanding. His methods form the foundation of symbolic reasoning, problem-solving, and computation—all essential to the technologies we rely on daily.
Next time you hear the word “algorithm,” remember:
It all began with a man in 9th-century Baghdad, solving equations with nothing more than logic, geometry, and a desire to understand.
📚 Suggested Reading:
The House of Wisdom by Jim Al-Khalili
Algebra in the Middle Ages by Roshdi Rashed
Algorithms to Live By by Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths (modern application)
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