English

Etymology

From algorithme; from the algorisme ("the Arabic numeral system"), a modification likely due to a mistaken connection with Greek ἀριθμός (number); from Medieval Latin algorismus, a mangled transliteration of the name of the Islamic mathematician w:Muhammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī|al-Khwārizmī (Arabic: , "native of Khwarezm.")

Alternative spellings

• algorism (obsolete)

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈælgəɹɪðm/,

Noun

1. A precise step-by-step plan for a computational procedure that begins with an input value and yields an output value in a finite number of steps.
2. * 1990, Cormen, Leiserson, and Rivest, Introduction to Algorithms: page 1. Cambridge, MA, The MIT Press, 1999 (23rd printing)
3. *: Informally, an algorithm is any well-defined computational procedure that takes some value, or set of values, as input and produces some value, or set of values, as output. An algorithm is thus a sequence of computational steps that transform the input into the output.

Usage notes

• Though some technical definitions require that an algorithm always terminate in a finite number of steps, this distinction is not generally observed in practice.

Derived terms

• parallel algorithm
• sequential algorithm
• distributed algorithm
• genetic algorithm
• approximation algorithm
• randomized algorithm
• greedy algorithm
• divide and conquer algorithm

Related terms

• algorithmic
• algorithmics
• algebra
• algorism
• data structure
• function
• program

Translations

• Bosnian: algoritem
• Catalan: algorisme
• Chinese: 算法 (suàn.fǎ)
• Croatian: {{t-|hr|algoritam|m}}
• Czech: {{t-|cs|algoritmus|m}}
• Dutch: {{t+|nl|algoritme|n}}
• Finnish:
• French: {{t+|fr|algorithme|m}}
• Georgian: ალგორითმი (algoriṭmi)
• German: {{t+|de|Algorithmus|m}}
• Greek: αλγορίθμος (algoríŧmos)
• Icelandic:
• Italian:
• Japanese: {{t+|ja|アルゴリズム|tr=arugorizumu|sc=Jpan}}

• Korean: 알고리즘 (al.go.ri.jŭm)
• Latin: algorithmus
• Lithuanian: {{t+|lt|algoritmas|m|xs=Lithuanian}}
• Norwegian: {{t+|no|algoritme|m}}
• Persian: (algoritm)
• Polish: {{t+|pl|algorytm|m}}
• Portuguese: {{t+|pt|algoritmo|m}}
• Russian: {{t+|ru|алгоритм|m|tr=algoritm|sc=Cyrl}}
• Spanish: {{t+|es|algoritmo|m}}
• Swedish:
• Tagalog: algorítmo
• Thai: (àlkooriitʰɨm)
• Turkish: {{t+|tr|algoritma|m}}

Category:Arabic derivations Category:Computer science Category:Eponyms Category:Persian derivations

ar:algorithm de:algorithm el:algorithm fa:algorithm fr:algorithm io:algorithm id:algorithm lt:algorithm hu:algorithm ja:algorithm pl:algorithm fi:algorithm sv:algorithm ta:algorithm vi:algorithm tr:algorithm uk:algorithm zh:algorithm