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algorithm: algorithm: [13] Algorithm comes from the name of an Arab mathematician, in full Abu Ja far Mohammed ibn-Musa al-Khwarizmi (c. 780–c. 850), who lived and taught in Baghdad and whose works in translation introduced Arabic numerals to the West. The last part of his name means literally ‘man from Khwarizm’, a town on the borders of Turkmenistan, now called Khiva. The Arabic system of numeration and calculation, based on 10, of which he was the chief exponent, became known in Arabic by his name – al-khwarizmi.

This was borrowed into medieval Latin as algorismus (with the Arabic -izmi transformed into the Latin suffix -ismus ‘-ism’). In Old French algorismus became augorime, which was the basis of the earliest English form of the word, augrim. From the 14th century onwards, Latin influence gradually led to the adoption of the spelling algorism in English.

This remains the standard form of the word when referring to the Arabic number system; but in the late 17th century an alternative version, algorithm, arose owing to association with Greek árithmos ‘number’ (source of arithmetic [13]), and this became established from the 1930s onwards as the term for a stepby- step mathematical procedure, as used in computing. Algol, the name of a computer programming language, was coined in the late 1950s from ‘algorithmic language’.
=> allegory, allergy, arithmetic
-ad: word-forming element denoting collective numerals (Olympiad), plant families, and names of poems, from Greek -as (genitive -ados), a suffix forming fem. nouns; also used in fem. patronymics (Dryad, Naiad, also, in plural, Pleiades, Hyades).
algebra (n.): 1550s, from Medieval Latin algebra, from Arabic al jabr ("in vulgar pronunciation, al-jebr" [Klein]) "reunion of broken parts," as in computation, used 9c. by Baghdad mathematician Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi as the title of his famous treatise on equations ("Kitab al-Jabr w'al-Muqabala" "Rules of Reintegration and Reduction"), which also introduced Arabic numerals to the West. The accent shifted 17c. from second syllable to first. The word was used in English 15c.-16c. to mean "bone-setting," probably from Arab medical men in Spain.
Arabic (adj.): early 14c., from Old French Arabique (13c.), from Latin Arabicus "Arabic" (see Arab). Old English used Arabisc "Arabish." Originally in reference to gum arabic; noun meaning "Arabic language" is from late 14c.

Arabic numerals (actually Indian) first attested 1727; they were introduced in Europe by Gerbert of Aurillac (later Pope Sylvester II) after a visit to Islamic Spain in 967-970. A prominent man of science, he taught in the diocesan school at Reims, but the numbers made little headway against conservative opposition in the Church until after the Crusades. The earliest depiction of them in English, in "The Crafte of Nombrynge" (c. 1350) correctly identifies them as "teen figurys of Inde."
cipher (n.): late 14c., "arithmetical symbol for zero," from Old French cifre "nought, zero," Medieval Latin cifra, with Spanish and Italian cifra, ultimately from Arabic sifr "zero," literally "empty, nothing," from safara "to be empty;" loan-translation of Sanskrit sunya-s "empty." The word came to Europe with Arabic numerals. Originally in English "zero," then "any numeral" (early 15c.), then (first in French and Italian) "secret way of writing; coded message" (a sense first attested in English 1520s), because early codes often substituted numbers for letters. Klein says Modern French chiffre is from Italian cifra.
cipher (v.): "to do arithmetic" (with Arabic numerals), 1520s, from cipher (n.). Meaning "to write in code" is from 1560s. Related: Ciphered; ciphering.
D: fourth letter of the Roman alphabet, from Greek delta, from Phoenician and Hebrew daleth, pausal form of deleth "door," so called from its shape. The sign for "500" in Roman numerals. 3-D for "three-dimensional" is attested from 1952.
decussate (v.): 1650s, from Latin decussatus, past participle of decussare "to divide crosswise, to cross in the form of an 'X,'" from decussis "the figure 'ten'" (in Roman numerals, represented by X) from decem "ten" (see ten). As an adjective, from 1825.
digit (n.): late 14c., "numeral below 10," from Latin digitus "finger or toe" (also with secondary meanings dealing in counting and numerals), related to dicere "tell, say, point out" (see diction). Numerical sense is because numerals under 10 were counted on fingers. The "finger or toe" sense in English is attested from 1640s.
-fold: multiplicative word-forming element attached to numerals, from Old English -feald, Northumbrian -fald, from Proto-Germanic *-falthaz (cognates: Old Saxon -fald, Old Frisian -fald, Old Norse -faldr, Dutch -voud, German -falt, Gothic falþs), comb. form of *falthan, from PIE *polt-, extended form of root *pel- (3) "to fold" (cognates: Greek -paltos, -plos; Latin -plus; see fold (v.)). Native words with it have been crowded out by Latinate double, triple, etc., but it persists in manifold, hundredfold, etc.
Octavian: masc. proper name, from Latin, from Octavius, from octavus "eighth," from octo (see eight).
But although we find so marked differences in the use of the numerals as names, it is impossible to believe that this use did not arise in the same way for all; that is, that they were at first used to distinguish children by the order of birth. But when we find them as praenomina in historical times it is evident that they no longer referred to order of birth. [George Davis Chase, "The Origin of Roman Praenomina," "Harvard Studies in Classical Philology," 1897]
-some (2): suffix added to numerals meaning "a group of (that number)," as in twosome, from pronoun use of Old English sum "some" (see some). Originally a separate word used with the genitive plural (as in sixa sum "six-some"); the inflection disappeared in Middle English and the pronoun was absorbed. Use of some with a number meaning "approximately" also was in Old English.
separatrix (n.): line or hooked line used to separate printed figures, originally with numerals and used where modern texts use a decimal point, also in other specialized senses, from Late Latin (linea) separatrix, feminine agent noun from separare (see separate (v.)).
Septuagint (n.): "Greek version of the Old Testament," 1630s, earlier as the word for the translators collectively (1570s), from Late Latin septuaginta (interpretes) "seventy (interpreters)," from Latin septuaginta "seventy," from septem "seven" (see seven) + -ginta "tens, ten times," from PIE *dkm-ta-, from *dekm- "ten" (see ten).

So called in reference to the (incorrect) tradition that the translation was done 3c. B.C.E. by 70 or 72 Jewish scholars (in Middle English, the Seuenty turneres) from Palestine and completed in 70 or 72 days. The translation is believed now to have been carried out at different times by an undetermined number of Egyptian Jews. Often denoted by Roman numerals, LXX. Related: Septuagintal.
sixty-nine (n.): in sexual sense, 1888, as a translation of French faire soixante neuf, literally "to do 69." So called from the similarity of positions to the arrangement of the numerals.
some (adj.): Old English sum "some, a, a certain one, something, a certain quantity; a certain number;" with numerals "out of" (as in sum feowra "one of four"); from Proto-Germanic *suma- (cognates: Old Saxon, Old Frisian, Old High German sum, Old Norse sumr, Gothic sums), from PIE *smm-o-, suffixed form of root *sem- (1) "one," also "as one" (adv.), "together with" (see same). For substitution of -o- for -u-, see come.
The word has had greater currency in English than in the other Teutonic languages, in some of which it is now restricted to dialect use, or represented only by derivatives or compounds .... [OED]
As a pronoun from c. 1100; as an adverb from late 13c. Meaning "remarkable" is attested from 1808, American English colloquial. A possessive form is attested from 1560s, but always was rare. Many combination forms (somewhat, sometime, somewhere) were in Middle English but often written as two words till 17-19c. Somewhen is rare and since 19c. used almost exclusively in combination with the more common compounds; somewho "someone" is attested from late 14c. but did not endure. Scott (1816) has somegate "somewhere, in some way, somehow," and somekins "some kind of a" is recorded from c. 1200. Get some "have sexual intercourse" is attested 1899 in a quote attributed to Abe Lincoln from c. 1840.
umpty: 1905, "of an indefinite number," originally Morse code slang for "dash," influenced by association with numerals such as twenty, thirty, etc.
sexagenary: " Mathematics . Involving or based on the number 60; = sexagesimal. Now chiefly in sexagenary cycle", Late 16th cent.; earliest use found in Thomas Blundeville (fl. 1561), author and translator. From classical Latin sexāgēnārius that contains, or is identified in some way by, the number sixty, sixty years old, in post-classical Latin also sixtyfold (3rd cent.) from sexāgēnī sixty each (from sexāgintā sixty (from sex six + -ā- (after quadrāgintā forty) + -gintā, suffix forming cardinal numerals from thirty to ninety, related to decem ten: see decem-) + -ēnī, suffix forming distributive adjectives, after e.g. sēnī six apiece, six at a time, six) + -ārius.
octogenary: "The state or fact of being an octogenarian. rare", Late 17th cent.; earliest use found in John Aubrey (1626–1697), antiquary and biographer. From classical Latin octōgēnārius containing eighty, aged eighty, in post-classical Latin also used as noun denoting a person aged eighty from octōgēnī eighty each (from octōgintā eighty (from octo eight + -gintā, suffix forming cardinal numerals from thirty to ninety, related to decem ten: see decem-) + -ēnī, suffix forming distributive adjectives, after e.g. sēnī six apiece, six at a time, six) + -ārius. Compare Middle French, French octogénaire,, Italian ottogenario, †octuagenario, Spanish octogenario.
nonagesimal: " Astronomy and Astrology . The point of the ecliptic which is highest above the horizon at any given time, being 90 degrees round the ecliptic from the point at which it intersects the horizon", Early 18th cent.; earliest use found in John Harris (c1666–1719), writer and lecturer on science. From classical Latin nōnāgēsimus ninetieth (from nōnāgintā ninety (from novem nine + -gintā, suffix forming cardinal numerals from thirty to ninety, related to decem ten: see decem-) + -ēsimus, extended form (after vīcēsimus) of -simus, suffix used to form ordinal numerals) + -al.