Chinese Zhusuan

中國珠算

Calculating begins with the necessity of it. Stones, shells, knots, etc. are all the primary counting tools. Later, with the development of productivity, the amount of calculation became greater, and simple counting could no longer meet the demand. So, our ancestors invented Zhusuan. In Chinese, "Zhu" means small beads, and "Suan" refers to a special mathematical theory. And the tool Chinese use to do Zhusuan is called the abacus, known as China's "Fifth Great Invention". Combining with abacus rhymes, people can do mathematical calculations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and power, by moving the abacus beads with fingers. The abacus is acknowledged as "the oldest computer in the world" for its simplified calculation and unique mathematical theory.

人類的計(jì)算行為，始于“數(shù)”的必要性。石子、貝殼、繩結(jié)等是最初級的計(jì)數(shù)工具。后來，隨著生產(chǎn)力的發(fā)展，計(jì)算量越來越大，簡單的計(jì)數(shù)已經(jīng)無法滿足需求。于是，我們的祖先發(fā)明了珠算。在漢語中，“珠”是指小珠子，“算”是指一套特殊的數(shù)學(xué)理論。中國人用來進(jìn)行珠算的工具叫做算盤，它被稱為中國的“第五大發(fā)明”。人們依據(jù)珠算口訣，通過手指撥動(dòng)算盤珠子便可以完成加、減、乘、除、乘方等數(shù)學(xué)計(jì)算。算盤以其簡便的計(jì)算和獨(dú)特的計(jì)算理論，被譽(yù)為“世界上最古老的計(jì)算機(jī)”。

Since it was easy to make an abacus and it was also easy to remember abacus rhymes, the abacus was widely used in ancient China. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, there were records about Zhusuan. Since the 12th century, Chinese Zhusuan has been quite perfected. In the painting of The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival by Zhang Zeduan, a painter of the Northern Song Dynasty, a big abacus is placed on the counter of a medicine shop. That is the best proof that the abacus was widely used and Zhusuan was popularized in China, which means China had an absolute leading position in mathematics at that time.

算盤制作簡單，口訣朗朗上口，所以在古代被廣泛使用。我國東漢時(shí)期，就有關(guān)于珠算的文字記載。12世紀(jì)，中國珠算體系已經(jīng)相當(dāng)完善。北宋畫家張擇端的《清明上河圖》中，一家藥鋪柜臺上擺放著一把大算盤，這說明北宋時(shí)，算盤已經(jīng)在中國廣泛使用，珠算已經(jīng)普及。這在當(dāng)時(shí)的數(shù)學(xué)屆絕對處于領(lǐng)先地位。

According to records, Chinese Zhusuan has gradually spread into Japan, Korea, America and other countries and regions since the 16th century. In 2002, the World Association of Abacus and Mental Arithmetic was established in Beijing. At present, the association has 58 members from 17 countries and regions, including America, Australia, Tonga, Brunei, Canada, Russia, Japan and South Korea. In 2013, Chinese Zhusuan was officially inscribed the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In the late 20th century, the Chinese invented mental arithmetic based on Zhusuan, which enables people to do super complex calculations mentally. Children's educators have found that practicing mental arithmetic significantly improves children's attention, memory, thinking, creativity and reading.

據(jù)史料記載，中國的珠算，從16世紀(jì)開始，算盤逐漸傳入日本、韓國、美國等國家和地區(qū)。2002年，世界珠算心算聯(lián)合會(huì)在北京成立。目前，世珠聯(lián)有來自美國、澳大利亞、湯加、文萊、加拿大、俄羅斯、日本、韓國等，17個(gè)國家和地區(qū)的58個(gè)會(huì)員單位。2013年12月4日，中國珠算被正式列入人類非物質(zhì)文化遺產(chǎn)代表代表作名錄。20世紀(jì)后半葉，中國人推出以珠算為基礎(chǔ)的珠心算，人們在大腦中就可以完成超級復(fù)雜的計(jì)算。兒童教育家還發(fā)現(xiàn)，珠心算可以顯著提高兒童的注意力、記憶力、思維力、創(chuàng)造力和閱讀力等。

Chinese Zhusuan is not only the traditional Chinese knowledge and practice, but also an important wisdom of ancient Chinese civilization. As an intangible cultural heritage, Chinese Zhusuan reminds more people that the Chinese used and are using it to control the world. The unique way of thinking and values will not only be passed down continuously, but also affect the whole world.

中國珠算，既是中國人的傳統(tǒng)知識與實(shí)踐，也是古代中華文明的智慧結(jié)晶。作為非物質(zhì)文化遺產(chǎn)，它正在讓更多人記住，中國人用珠算來計(jì)算大千世界。這種獨(dú)特的思維方式與世界觀，不僅會(huì)永續(xù)流傳，而且會(huì)影響整個(gè)世界。