Synopses & Reviews
"Georges Ifrah is the man. This book, quite simply, rules. . . . It is outstanding . . . a mind-boggling and enriching experience." The Guardian (London) "Monumental. . . . a fascinating journey taking us through many different cultures."The Times (London)"Ifrahs book amazes and fascinates by the scope of its scholarship. It is nothing less than the history of the human race told through figures." International Herald Tribune Now in paperback, here is Georges Ifrahs landmark international bestsellerthe first complete, universal study of the invention and evolution of numbers the world over. A riveting history of counting and calculating, from the time of the cave dwellers to the twentieth century, this fascinating volume brings numbers to thrilling life, explaining their development in human terms, the intriguing situations that made them necessary, and the brilliant achievements in human thought that they made possible. It takes us through the numbers story from Europe to China, via ancient Greece and Rome, Mesopotamia, Latin America, India, and the Arabic countries. Exploring the many ways civilizations developed and changed their mathematical systems, Ifrah imparts a unique insight into the nature of human thoughtand into how our understanding of numbers and the ways they shape our lives have changed and grown over thousands of years. "Dazzling."Kirkus Reviews "Sure to transfix readers."PublishersWeekly
Review
"Georges Ifrah is the man. This book, quite simply, rules....It is outstanding...a mind-boggling and enriching experience." The Guardian
Review
"Monumental....a fascinating journey taking us through many different cultures." The Times (London)
Review
)"Ifrahs book amazes and fascinates by the scope of its scholarship. It is nothing less than the history of the human race told through figures." International Herald Tribune
Review
"Sure to transfix readers." Publishers Weekly
Synopsis
Now in paperback, here is Georges Ifrahs landmark international bestseller the first complete, universal study of the invention and evolution of numbers the world over. A riveting history of counting and calculating, from the time of the cave dwellers to the twentieth century, this fascinating volume brings numbers to thrilling life, explaining their development in human terms, the intriguing situations that made them necessary, and the brilliant achievements in human thought that they made possible. It takes us through the numbers story from Europe to China, via ancient Greece and Rome, Mesopotamia, Latin America, India, and the Arabic countries. Exploring the many ways civilizations developed and changed their mathematical systems, Ifrah imparts a unique insight into the nature of human thought and into how our understanding of numbers and the ways they shape our lives have changed and grown over thousands of years.
Synopsis
Georges Ifrah is the man. This book, quite simply, rules. . . . It is outstanding . . . a mind-boggling and enriching experience. -The Guardian (London) Monumental. . . . a fascinating journey taking us through many different cultures.-The Times (London)Ifrah's book amazes and fascinates by the scope of its scholarship. It is nothing less than the history of the human race told through figures. -International Herald Tribune Now in paperback, here is Georges Ifrah's landmark international bestseller-the first complete, universal study of the invention and evolution of numbers the world over. A riveting history of counting and calculating, from the time of the cave dwellers to the twentieth century, this fascinating volume brings numbers to thrilling life, explaining their development in human terms, the intriguing situations that made them necessary, and the brilliant achievements in human thought that they made possible. It takes us through the numbers story from Europe to China, via ancient Greece and Rome, Mesopotamia, Latin America, India, and the Arabic countries. Exploring the many ways civilizations developed and changed their mathematical systems, Ifrah imparts a unique insight into the nature of human thought-and into how our understanding of numbers and the ways they shape our lives have changed and grown over thousands of years. Dazzling.-Kirkus Reviews Sure to transfix readers.-PublishersWeekly
About the Author
GEORGES IFRAH is an independent scholar and former math teacher. DAVID BELLOS, the primary translator, is Professor of French at Princeton University. SOPHIE WOOD, cotranslator, is a specialist in technical translation from French. IAN MONK, cotranslator, has translated the works of Georges Perec and Daniel Pennac.
Table of Contents
Explaining the Origins: Ethnological and Psychological Approaches to the Sources of Numbers.
Base Numbers and the Birth of Number-systems.
The Earliest Calculating Machine - The Hand.
How Cro-Magnon Man Counted.
Tally Sticks: Accounting for Beginners.
Numbers on Strings.
Number, Value and Money.
Numbers of Sumer.
The Enigma of the Sexagesimal Base.
The Development of Written Numerals in Elam and Mesopotamia.
The Decipherment of a Five-Thousand-Year-Old System.
How the Sumerians Did Their Sums.
Mesopotamian Numbering after the Eclipse of Sumer.
The Numbers of Ancient Egypt.
Counting in the Times of the Cretan and Hittite Kings.
Greek and Roman Numerals.
Letters and Numbers.
The Invention of Alphabetic Numerals.
Other Alphabetic Number-systems.
Magic, Mysticism, Divination, and Other Secrets.
The Numbers of Chinese Civilisation.
The Amazing Achievements of the Maya.
The Final Stage of Numerical Notation.
Part I: Indian Civilisation: The Cradle of Modern Numerals.
Part II: Dictionary of the Numeral Symbols of Indian Civilisation.
Indian Numerals and Calculation in the Islamic World.
The Slow Progress of Indo-Arabic Numerals in Western Europe.
Beyond Perfection.
Bibliography.
Index of Names and Subjects.