Subject: [HM] mathematics, matema'tica(s) and mathematical
From: Luis Puig (luis.puig@uv.es)
Date: Tue Mar 28 2000 - 19:54:21 EST
Romulo Lins wrote:
> why is it that in some languages one says "mathematicS" and in others
> the equivalent of "mathematic" (Portuguese, for instance, and it is
> interesting to note that Spanish, although *very* close to Portuguese,
> has "matema'ticas" instead).
That's not exact. Spanish has both "matema'ticas" and "matema'tica",
plural and singular. It's true that the plural form is more used, and
more ancient. Spanish conserves in the plural form the original sense
of "mathematics" as a set of disciplines (arithmetic, geometry,
astronomy, music). I don't know when the singular form first appear
in Spanish, but it has become the "original" term: if one looks at
the Diccionary of the Spanish Academy the word that is defined is
"matem'atica" (singular), but after defining the singular form the
dictionary says "used more frequently in plural".
People that want to stress that "las matem'aticas" were unified in
"modern" times uses "la matem'atica". Bourbakistes stressed very
strongly this use of the singular form, and anti-bourbakistes as a
reaction used the plural form, but that's an old war.
(Bourbaki in fact entitled its work in French "Elements de
Mathematique" with "mathematique" in singular. French has also de
plural form "mathematiques".)
--
Luis Puig
Universitat de Valencia
Departament de Didactica de la Matematica
Aptdo. 22047
46071 Valencia
Espan~a
tlf. 96-3864486
e-mail: luis.puig@uv.es
http://www.uv.es/~didmat/luis/
Direccion particular / Personal address
Avda. Blasco Iban~ez, 23
46010 Valencia
Espan~a
tlf. 96-3864190
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