Why are algorithms called algorithms? We can thank a Persian mathematician, Muhammad al-Khwarizmi, who was born around AD780.
The concept of algorithms has a long history and the term algorithm itself is derived from the name of the Persian mathematician and scholar Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, who lived in the 9th century during the Islamic Golden Age. Al-Khwarizmi's work, particularly his book "Al-Kitab al-Mukhtasar fi Hisab al-Jabr wal-Muqabala" (The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing), played a significant role in the development of algebra and mathematics, and his name gave rise to the term "algorithms."
However, algorithms, in a broader sense, have been used and developed by various civilizations and scholars throughout history and ancient mathematicians, such as Euclid, Archimedes, and the ancient Egyptians, used algorithmic methods in their mathematical and geometric works. In this context, algorithms were sets of step-by-step instructions for solving specific problems.
Today, the development and formalization of algorithms have been contributed to by many individuals and groups, including early computer scientists and mathematicians like Alan Turing, John von Neumann, and Ada Lovelace. The field of computer science, which deals extensively with algorithms, has been instrumental in shaping the theory and practice of algorithms.
In summary, while Al-Khwarizmi's work and the term "algorithm" are associated with his name, the concept of algorithms has a rich history and has been developed by many individuals and cultures over time.
Algorithmic trading, often referred to as algo trading, is a method of executing trading strategies using computer programs to automate and optimize the trading process and these algorithms are designed to make trading decisions based on predefined rules, criteria, and parameters.
Another mathematical work written shortly after algebra is the Introduction to Arithmetic, which was based on Latin numbers he first described numbers as a combination of units and then defined the terms used in algebra.
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