Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 158, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 July 1919 — Origin of Number Symbols. [ARTICLE]

Origin of Number Symbols.

The origin of our common number symbols has never been clearly established. hut until i ntly all writers agree that these synth- Is were transmitted to Europe by lit-? Arabs. who had obtained them fr>uu India. It is very interesting to note that available data relating to the origin <>f our common nninher symbols >i:t\<■ incn carefully re-examined by Carra de Vaux. Among the most su pri.dng results are .the following: Our’jt-oimiiui number symbols originated in Europe ami from there were transmitted t<> lite Persians. Both India and Arabia received them from Persia, so that the common term Hindu-Arabic numerals i-' d 'eirtedly misleading. The cotiiim u numerals did not come from letters < f th? Iphabet, but were formed directly for the purpose of representing numin: