Description

Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art (《九章算术》, pinyin: jiǔ zhāng suàn shù) is a Chinese mathematics book composed by generations of scholars during the Han dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE). This book is one of the earliest surviving mathematics texts from China. It lays out an approach to mathematics that centers on finding the most general methods or algorithms for solving problems. Majority of the problems involve the computation of rates and proportion, unknown quantities, square roots, and cube roots. These computation methods are extended to solve applied problems on areas, volumes, simultaneous linear equations, quadratic equations, and right triangles.

About the Author

Zhang Cang (张苍, c. 253 - 152 BCE) is credited for compiling and editing the earliest edition of the text. Archaeological evidence suggests that much of its contents is a collection of Chinese mathematical knowledge from the 11th – 2nd century BCE. Later mathematicians wrote commentaries explaining the methods and theory. The most famous commentary was written by the mathematician Liu Hui (刘徽, fl. 3rd century CE). Liu Hui explained the underlying principles of the solution methods with mathematical proofs and theoretical arguments. 

Trivia

In modern times, "算术" (pinyin: suàn shù) refers to arithmetic only; however, "算术" referred to mathematics in ancient China. Hence, the Chinese title 《九章算术》(Jiuzhang Suanshu) should be translated as "Nine Chapters on Mathematics".

By: Tao Steven Zheng (郑涛)