Groups, Rings and Fields. The 2019 Stack Overflow Developer Survey Results Are In Announcing the arrival of Valued Associate #679: Cesar Manara Planned maintenance scheduled April 17/18, 2019 at 00:00UTC (8:00pm US/Eastern)Why are rings called rings?Cohesive picture of groups, rings, fields, modules and vector spaces.Making sense out of “field”, “algebra”, “ring” and “semi-ring” in names of set systemsWhy are groups “abelian” but rings “commutative”?Is division allowed in rings and fields?What happens with $S_n$ in rings, integral domains and fields?Good exercises on groups, fields, rings etcRings and FieldsMetaphor/Analogies for Rings and Fields?What Exactly Are Quotient/Factor Groups and Rings?Factor Rings over Finite Fields

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Groups, Rings and Fields.



The 2019 Stack Overflow Developer Survey Results Are In
Announcing the arrival of Valued Associate #679: Cesar Manara
Planned maintenance scheduled April 17/18, 2019 at 00:00UTC (8:00pm US/Eastern)Why are rings called rings?Cohesive picture of groups, rings, fields, modules and vector spaces.Making sense out of “field”, “algebra”, “ring” and “semi-ring” in names of set systemsWhy are groups “abelian” but rings “commutative”?Is division allowed in rings and fields?What happens with $S_n$ in rings, integral domains and fields?Good exercises on groups, fields, rings etcRings and FieldsMetaphor/Analogies for Rings and Fields?What Exactly Are Quotient/Factor Groups and Rings?Factor Rings over Finite Fields










3












$begingroup$


I am asking for the analogy behind these structures names. Why is a "field" called a field? Is there an analogy between a usual ring (finger ring) and a mathematical ring?










share|cite|improve this question











$endgroup$











  • $begingroup$
    I think of a ring in the context of a crime ring. It is another name for a collection.
    $endgroup$
    – John Douma
    Mar 24 at 18:42










  • $begingroup$
    Related: Why are rings called rings
    $endgroup$
    – Brian
    Mar 24 at 22:56















3












$begingroup$


I am asking for the analogy behind these structures names. Why is a "field" called a field? Is there an analogy between a usual ring (finger ring) and a mathematical ring?










share|cite|improve this question











$endgroup$











  • $begingroup$
    I think of a ring in the context of a crime ring. It is another name for a collection.
    $endgroup$
    – John Douma
    Mar 24 at 18:42










  • $begingroup$
    Related: Why are rings called rings
    $endgroup$
    – Brian
    Mar 24 at 22:56













3












3








3


1



$begingroup$


I am asking for the analogy behind these structures names. Why is a "field" called a field? Is there an analogy between a usual ring (finger ring) and a mathematical ring?










share|cite|improve this question











$endgroup$




I am asking for the analogy behind these structures names. Why is a "field" called a field? Is there an analogy between a usual ring (finger ring) and a mathematical ring?







linear-algebra abstract-algebra group-theory ring-theory






share|cite|improve this question















share|cite|improve this question













share|cite|improve this question




share|cite|improve this question








edited Mar 24 at 18:49









John Douma

5,82021520




5,82021520










asked Mar 24 at 18:25







user657417


















  • $begingroup$
    I think of a ring in the context of a crime ring. It is another name for a collection.
    $endgroup$
    – John Douma
    Mar 24 at 18:42










  • $begingroup$
    Related: Why are rings called rings
    $endgroup$
    – Brian
    Mar 24 at 22:56
















  • $begingroup$
    I think of a ring in the context of a crime ring. It is another name for a collection.
    $endgroup$
    – John Douma
    Mar 24 at 18:42










  • $begingroup$
    Related: Why are rings called rings
    $endgroup$
    – Brian
    Mar 24 at 22:56















$begingroup$
I think of a ring in the context of a crime ring. It is another name for a collection.
$endgroup$
– John Douma
Mar 24 at 18:42




$begingroup$
I think of a ring in the context of a crime ring. It is another name for a collection.
$endgroup$
– John Douma
Mar 24 at 18:42












$begingroup$
Related: Why are rings called rings
$endgroup$
– Brian
Mar 24 at 22:56




$begingroup$
Related: Why are rings called rings
$endgroup$
– Brian
Mar 24 at 22:56










2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes


















2












$begingroup$

From mathoverflow. Source at the end.



Why is a ring called "a ring"?




The idea that the name is motivated by 'circling back' might or might
not be true. But I could not find any trace of it there. In
particular, there seems to be no result close by regarding the fact
that the powers αn somehow 'circle back' to linear combinations (the
idea mentioned by KConrad); also no analogy to rings of residue
classes is drawn. (Of course, it is proved somewhere that such a
'ring' has a finite Z-module basis but the way this is presented does
not suggest any particular 'circling back' idea.)



Hilbert's definition for ring is (paraphrasing): given a collection of
algebraic integers, a ring is everything that can be written as
polynomial functions with integer coefficients of this given
collection. (As an aside, personally, I now finally understood the
idea behind the name integral domain/'Integritätsbereich'; a number
field is also called 'Rationalitätsbereich', so rational domain there,
being everything one gets with rational functions and the integral
domain is what one gets with integral functions. Added: I saw had I
started to read MO earlier I could have learned this usage due to
Kronecker was mentioned by KConrad on the question linked to).



He then right away comments that a 'ring' is thus closed/invariant
under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.



So, perhaps it is a ring just since one does not leave it even if one
moves around, say like a boxing-ring. Or, I quite like the idea
presented earlier of 'Ring' also being used to describe (figuratively)
a collection of people with a certain relation among them, a property
this word shares with 'Gruppe' [group] and also 'Körper' [field, but
literally body], both seem to have been established by then already.
(Which also is somehow a partial response to why a ring is a ring even
though it is not more ring-like than a group or a field; the later two
already had a different name.)



Then, it seems the first axiomatisation of some notion of ring is due
to Fraenkel (J. Reine Angew. Math., 1915). I stress some notion, since
it does not completely match current practise in that each element is
either a zero-divisor or invertible (and while non-commuativity is
allowed it is only in a somewhat restricted sense in that the two
products must only differ by an invertible element). The guiding
example seems to be rings of integers modulo composites.



Regarding the name 'Ring' (that paper is also in German) he credits
Hilbert but says there is some deviation of the meaning.



By constrast, Steinitz in his earlier axiomatization of fields (J.
Reine Angew. Math., 1910) also discusses 'Integritätsbereiche'
(integral domains) with exatly the axiomatization common today. (comm.
ring, with unit, no zero-divisors).



Then to 'Moderne Algebra' (1930) by van der Waerden (based on lectures
by Artin and Noether). [To be precise, I could not look at the
original edition, but only some later edition, I hope this did not
change over time.]



There one finds 'Ring' defined, (essentially) as is done now, as a
basic notion; without any discussion of the naming. [To be precise, a
ring there has not necessarily a multiplicative unit element and the
existence of additive inverse and neutral element is expressed
together via imposing solubility of a+X=b for all a,b.]



In addition, one also finds 'Integritätsbereich' there with a
different meaning than 'Ring'; namely as commutaitve ring without
zero-divisors (yet not necessarily with unit element, so somewhat
deviating from current usage and Steinitz).



I think one can make an argument that the structure is now called ring
because it is called like that in 'Moderne Algebra', and one can note
that also the naming of integral domain survived. (Except for slight
deviation with unit element, but which until today is not quite
uniform.)



And, it seems reasonable to assume that the naming of Artin, Noether,
van der Waerden as for Franekel is directly inspired by Hilbert. After
all, a ring has (just) the main properties mentioned by Hilbert for
his 'rings', closed under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
What I do not know is whether there is any earlier axiomatization of
ring in (or at least closer than Fraenkel's to) the current sense.
Fraenkel's



To sum it up, this is all but a 'definite' answer, but I hope it
contains some relevant information. In my opinion, it could be
difficult, possibly even impossible, to ascertain what precisely
motivated the choice of name and even more so to really pin down why
one name survived and another not (say, Integritätsbereich did,
Rationalitätsbereich did not). It could however be interesting to
research literature and in particular lecture notes, if existant, of
the beginning 20th century to see the development in more detail.



Still, ring seems like a good word as there are some potential
intuitions (this circling back and the residue classes), also it is
short and was I think quite different from preexisting names.




Source: https://mathoverflow.net/questions/117292/why-is-a-ring-called-a-ring






share|cite|improve this answer









$endgroup$




















    0












    $begingroup$

    I have long wondered about the use of the term "field" in algebra. Here is what I have learned.



    The original term for such a structure, due to Dedekind, is "Zahlenkörper", which is German for "body of numbers"; it is now usually shortened to "Körper". Several other European languages use analogous terms for the same algebraic structure; e.g. "corps" in French and "cuerpo" in Spanish. Another early term, no longer in use, was Kronecker's "Rationalitaetsbereich", which means something like "realm of rationalities".



    Wikipedia suggests the earliest use of the term "field" in English was due to E.H. Moore in 1893, but I recall seeing a usage by H.J.S. Smith, who died a decade earlier (I have, unfortunately, lost the reference). It is not clear why "field" (which is indeed a possible rendering of "Bereich") was used instead of "body".



    A number of languages now use terms that correspond to the English "field"; e.g. "поле" in Russian and "campo" in Italian.






    share|cite|improve this answer









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      2 Answers
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      2 Answers
      2






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      active

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      2












      $begingroup$

      From mathoverflow. Source at the end.



      Why is a ring called "a ring"?




      The idea that the name is motivated by 'circling back' might or might
      not be true. But I could not find any trace of it there. In
      particular, there seems to be no result close by regarding the fact
      that the powers αn somehow 'circle back' to linear combinations (the
      idea mentioned by KConrad); also no analogy to rings of residue
      classes is drawn. (Of course, it is proved somewhere that such a
      'ring' has a finite Z-module basis but the way this is presented does
      not suggest any particular 'circling back' idea.)



      Hilbert's definition for ring is (paraphrasing): given a collection of
      algebraic integers, a ring is everything that can be written as
      polynomial functions with integer coefficients of this given
      collection. (As an aside, personally, I now finally understood the
      idea behind the name integral domain/'Integritätsbereich'; a number
      field is also called 'Rationalitätsbereich', so rational domain there,
      being everything one gets with rational functions and the integral
      domain is what one gets with integral functions. Added: I saw had I
      started to read MO earlier I could have learned this usage due to
      Kronecker was mentioned by KConrad on the question linked to).



      He then right away comments that a 'ring' is thus closed/invariant
      under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.



      So, perhaps it is a ring just since one does not leave it even if one
      moves around, say like a boxing-ring. Or, I quite like the idea
      presented earlier of 'Ring' also being used to describe (figuratively)
      a collection of people with a certain relation among them, a property
      this word shares with 'Gruppe' [group] and also 'Körper' [field, but
      literally body], both seem to have been established by then already.
      (Which also is somehow a partial response to why a ring is a ring even
      though it is not more ring-like than a group or a field; the later two
      already had a different name.)



      Then, it seems the first axiomatisation of some notion of ring is due
      to Fraenkel (J. Reine Angew. Math., 1915). I stress some notion, since
      it does not completely match current practise in that each element is
      either a zero-divisor or invertible (and while non-commuativity is
      allowed it is only in a somewhat restricted sense in that the two
      products must only differ by an invertible element). The guiding
      example seems to be rings of integers modulo composites.



      Regarding the name 'Ring' (that paper is also in German) he credits
      Hilbert but says there is some deviation of the meaning.



      By constrast, Steinitz in his earlier axiomatization of fields (J.
      Reine Angew. Math., 1910) also discusses 'Integritätsbereiche'
      (integral domains) with exatly the axiomatization common today. (comm.
      ring, with unit, no zero-divisors).



      Then to 'Moderne Algebra' (1930) by van der Waerden (based on lectures
      by Artin and Noether). [To be precise, I could not look at the
      original edition, but only some later edition, I hope this did not
      change over time.]



      There one finds 'Ring' defined, (essentially) as is done now, as a
      basic notion; without any discussion of the naming. [To be precise, a
      ring there has not necessarily a multiplicative unit element and the
      existence of additive inverse and neutral element is expressed
      together via imposing solubility of a+X=b for all a,b.]



      In addition, one also finds 'Integritätsbereich' there with a
      different meaning than 'Ring'; namely as commutaitve ring without
      zero-divisors (yet not necessarily with unit element, so somewhat
      deviating from current usage and Steinitz).



      I think one can make an argument that the structure is now called ring
      because it is called like that in 'Moderne Algebra', and one can note
      that also the naming of integral domain survived. (Except for slight
      deviation with unit element, but which until today is not quite
      uniform.)



      And, it seems reasonable to assume that the naming of Artin, Noether,
      van der Waerden as for Franekel is directly inspired by Hilbert. After
      all, a ring has (just) the main properties mentioned by Hilbert for
      his 'rings', closed under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
      What I do not know is whether there is any earlier axiomatization of
      ring in (or at least closer than Fraenkel's to) the current sense.
      Fraenkel's



      To sum it up, this is all but a 'definite' answer, but I hope it
      contains some relevant information. In my opinion, it could be
      difficult, possibly even impossible, to ascertain what precisely
      motivated the choice of name and even more so to really pin down why
      one name survived and another not (say, Integritätsbereich did,
      Rationalitätsbereich did not). It could however be interesting to
      research literature and in particular lecture notes, if existant, of
      the beginning 20th century to see the development in more detail.



      Still, ring seems like a good word as there are some potential
      intuitions (this circling back and the residue classes), also it is
      short and was I think quite different from preexisting names.




      Source: https://mathoverflow.net/questions/117292/why-is-a-ring-called-a-ring






      share|cite|improve this answer









      $endgroup$

















        2












        $begingroup$

        From mathoverflow. Source at the end.



        Why is a ring called "a ring"?




        The idea that the name is motivated by 'circling back' might or might
        not be true. But I could not find any trace of it there. In
        particular, there seems to be no result close by regarding the fact
        that the powers αn somehow 'circle back' to linear combinations (the
        idea mentioned by KConrad); also no analogy to rings of residue
        classes is drawn. (Of course, it is proved somewhere that such a
        'ring' has a finite Z-module basis but the way this is presented does
        not suggest any particular 'circling back' idea.)



        Hilbert's definition for ring is (paraphrasing): given a collection of
        algebraic integers, a ring is everything that can be written as
        polynomial functions with integer coefficients of this given
        collection. (As an aside, personally, I now finally understood the
        idea behind the name integral domain/'Integritätsbereich'; a number
        field is also called 'Rationalitätsbereich', so rational domain there,
        being everything one gets with rational functions and the integral
        domain is what one gets with integral functions. Added: I saw had I
        started to read MO earlier I could have learned this usage due to
        Kronecker was mentioned by KConrad on the question linked to).



        He then right away comments that a 'ring' is thus closed/invariant
        under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.



        So, perhaps it is a ring just since one does not leave it even if one
        moves around, say like a boxing-ring. Or, I quite like the idea
        presented earlier of 'Ring' also being used to describe (figuratively)
        a collection of people with a certain relation among them, a property
        this word shares with 'Gruppe' [group] and also 'Körper' [field, but
        literally body], both seem to have been established by then already.
        (Which also is somehow a partial response to why a ring is a ring even
        though it is not more ring-like than a group or a field; the later two
        already had a different name.)



        Then, it seems the first axiomatisation of some notion of ring is due
        to Fraenkel (J. Reine Angew. Math., 1915). I stress some notion, since
        it does not completely match current practise in that each element is
        either a zero-divisor or invertible (and while non-commuativity is
        allowed it is only in a somewhat restricted sense in that the two
        products must only differ by an invertible element). The guiding
        example seems to be rings of integers modulo composites.



        Regarding the name 'Ring' (that paper is also in German) he credits
        Hilbert but says there is some deviation of the meaning.



        By constrast, Steinitz in his earlier axiomatization of fields (J.
        Reine Angew. Math., 1910) also discusses 'Integritätsbereiche'
        (integral domains) with exatly the axiomatization common today. (comm.
        ring, with unit, no zero-divisors).



        Then to 'Moderne Algebra' (1930) by van der Waerden (based on lectures
        by Artin and Noether). [To be precise, I could not look at the
        original edition, but only some later edition, I hope this did not
        change over time.]



        There one finds 'Ring' defined, (essentially) as is done now, as a
        basic notion; without any discussion of the naming. [To be precise, a
        ring there has not necessarily a multiplicative unit element and the
        existence of additive inverse and neutral element is expressed
        together via imposing solubility of a+X=b for all a,b.]



        In addition, one also finds 'Integritätsbereich' there with a
        different meaning than 'Ring'; namely as commutaitve ring without
        zero-divisors (yet not necessarily with unit element, so somewhat
        deviating from current usage and Steinitz).



        I think one can make an argument that the structure is now called ring
        because it is called like that in 'Moderne Algebra', and one can note
        that also the naming of integral domain survived. (Except for slight
        deviation with unit element, but which until today is not quite
        uniform.)



        And, it seems reasonable to assume that the naming of Artin, Noether,
        van der Waerden as for Franekel is directly inspired by Hilbert. After
        all, a ring has (just) the main properties mentioned by Hilbert for
        his 'rings', closed under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
        What I do not know is whether there is any earlier axiomatization of
        ring in (or at least closer than Fraenkel's to) the current sense.
        Fraenkel's



        To sum it up, this is all but a 'definite' answer, but I hope it
        contains some relevant information. In my opinion, it could be
        difficult, possibly even impossible, to ascertain what precisely
        motivated the choice of name and even more so to really pin down why
        one name survived and another not (say, Integritätsbereich did,
        Rationalitätsbereich did not). It could however be interesting to
        research literature and in particular lecture notes, if existant, of
        the beginning 20th century to see the development in more detail.



        Still, ring seems like a good word as there are some potential
        intuitions (this circling back and the residue classes), also it is
        short and was I think quite different from preexisting names.




        Source: https://mathoverflow.net/questions/117292/why-is-a-ring-called-a-ring






        share|cite|improve this answer









        $endgroup$















          2












          2








          2





          $begingroup$

          From mathoverflow. Source at the end.



          Why is a ring called "a ring"?




          The idea that the name is motivated by 'circling back' might or might
          not be true. But I could not find any trace of it there. In
          particular, there seems to be no result close by regarding the fact
          that the powers αn somehow 'circle back' to linear combinations (the
          idea mentioned by KConrad); also no analogy to rings of residue
          classes is drawn. (Of course, it is proved somewhere that such a
          'ring' has a finite Z-module basis but the way this is presented does
          not suggest any particular 'circling back' idea.)



          Hilbert's definition for ring is (paraphrasing): given a collection of
          algebraic integers, a ring is everything that can be written as
          polynomial functions with integer coefficients of this given
          collection. (As an aside, personally, I now finally understood the
          idea behind the name integral domain/'Integritätsbereich'; a number
          field is also called 'Rationalitätsbereich', so rational domain there,
          being everything one gets with rational functions and the integral
          domain is what one gets with integral functions. Added: I saw had I
          started to read MO earlier I could have learned this usage due to
          Kronecker was mentioned by KConrad on the question linked to).



          He then right away comments that a 'ring' is thus closed/invariant
          under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.



          So, perhaps it is a ring just since one does not leave it even if one
          moves around, say like a boxing-ring. Or, I quite like the idea
          presented earlier of 'Ring' also being used to describe (figuratively)
          a collection of people with a certain relation among them, a property
          this word shares with 'Gruppe' [group] and also 'Körper' [field, but
          literally body], both seem to have been established by then already.
          (Which also is somehow a partial response to why a ring is a ring even
          though it is not more ring-like than a group or a field; the later two
          already had a different name.)



          Then, it seems the first axiomatisation of some notion of ring is due
          to Fraenkel (J. Reine Angew. Math., 1915). I stress some notion, since
          it does not completely match current practise in that each element is
          either a zero-divisor or invertible (and while non-commuativity is
          allowed it is only in a somewhat restricted sense in that the two
          products must only differ by an invertible element). The guiding
          example seems to be rings of integers modulo composites.



          Regarding the name 'Ring' (that paper is also in German) he credits
          Hilbert but says there is some deviation of the meaning.



          By constrast, Steinitz in his earlier axiomatization of fields (J.
          Reine Angew. Math., 1910) also discusses 'Integritätsbereiche'
          (integral domains) with exatly the axiomatization common today. (comm.
          ring, with unit, no zero-divisors).



          Then to 'Moderne Algebra' (1930) by van der Waerden (based on lectures
          by Artin and Noether). [To be precise, I could not look at the
          original edition, but only some later edition, I hope this did not
          change over time.]



          There one finds 'Ring' defined, (essentially) as is done now, as a
          basic notion; without any discussion of the naming. [To be precise, a
          ring there has not necessarily a multiplicative unit element and the
          existence of additive inverse and neutral element is expressed
          together via imposing solubility of a+X=b for all a,b.]



          In addition, one also finds 'Integritätsbereich' there with a
          different meaning than 'Ring'; namely as commutaitve ring without
          zero-divisors (yet not necessarily with unit element, so somewhat
          deviating from current usage and Steinitz).



          I think one can make an argument that the structure is now called ring
          because it is called like that in 'Moderne Algebra', and one can note
          that also the naming of integral domain survived. (Except for slight
          deviation with unit element, but which until today is not quite
          uniform.)



          And, it seems reasonable to assume that the naming of Artin, Noether,
          van der Waerden as for Franekel is directly inspired by Hilbert. After
          all, a ring has (just) the main properties mentioned by Hilbert for
          his 'rings', closed under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
          What I do not know is whether there is any earlier axiomatization of
          ring in (or at least closer than Fraenkel's to) the current sense.
          Fraenkel's



          To sum it up, this is all but a 'definite' answer, but I hope it
          contains some relevant information. In my opinion, it could be
          difficult, possibly even impossible, to ascertain what precisely
          motivated the choice of name and even more so to really pin down why
          one name survived and another not (say, Integritätsbereich did,
          Rationalitätsbereich did not). It could however be interesting to
          research literature and in particular lecture notes, if existant, of
          the beginning 20th century to see the development in more detail.



          Still, ring seems like a good word as there are some potential
          intuitions (this circling back and the residue classes), also it is
          short and was I think quite different from preexisting names.




          Source: https://mathoverflow.net/questions/117292/why-is-a-ring-called-a-ring






          share|cite|improve this answer









          $endgroup$



          From mathoverflow. Source at the end.



          Why is a ring called "a ring"?




          The idea that the name is motivated by 'circling back' might or might
          not be true. But I could not find any trace of it there. In
          particular, there seems to be no result close by regarding the fact
          that the powers αn somehow 'circle back' to linear combinations (the
          idea mentioned by KConrad); also no analogy to rings of residue
          classes is drawn. (Of course, it is proved somewhere that such a
          'ring' has a finite Z-module basis but the way this is presented does
          not suggest any particular 'circling back' idea.)



          Hilbert's definition for ring is (paraphrasing): given a collection of
          algebraic integers, a ring is everything that can be written as
          polynomial functions with integer coefficients of this given
          collection. (As an aside, personally, I now finally understood the
          idea behind the name integral domain/'Integritätsbereich'; a number
          field is also called 'Rationalitätsbereich', so rational domain there,
          being everything one gets with rational functions and the integral
          domain is what one gets with integral functions. Added: I saw had I
          started to read MO earlier I could have learned this usage due to
          Kronecker was mentioned by KConrad on the question linked to).



          He then right away comments that a 'ring' is thus closed/invariant
          under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.



          So, perhaps it is a ring just since one does not leave it even if one
          moves around, say like a boxing-ring. Or, I quite like the idea
          presented earlier of 'Ring' also being used to describe (figuratively)
          a collection of people with a certain relation among them, a property
          this word shares with 'Gruppe' [group] and also 'Körper' [field, but
          literally body], both seem to have been established by then already.
          (Which also is somehow a partial response to why a ring is a ring even
          though it is not more ring-like than a group or a field; the later two
          already had a different name.)



          Then, it seems the first axiomatisation of some notion of ring is due
          to Fraenkel (J. Reine Angew. Math., 1915). I stress some notion, since
          it does not completely match current practise in that each element is
          either a zero-divisor or invertible (and while non-commuativity is
          allowed it is only in a somewhat restricted sense in that the two
          products must only differ by an invertible element). The guiding
          example seems to be rings of integers modulo composites.



          Regarding the name 'Ring' (that paper is also in German) he credits
          Hilbert but says there is some deviation of the meaning.



          By constrast, Steinitz in his earlier axiomatization of fields (J.
          Reine Angew. Math., 1910) also discusses 'Integritätsbereiche'
          (integral domains) with exatly the axiomatization common today. (comm.
          ring, with unit, no zero-divisors).



          Then to 'Moderne Algebra' (1930) by van der Waerden (based on lectures
          by Artin and Noether). [To be precise, I could not look at the
          original edition, but only some later edition, I hope this did not
          change over time.]



          There one finds 'Ring' defined, (essentially) as is done now, as a
          basic notion; without any discussion of the naming. [To be precise, a
          ring there has not necessarily a multiplicative unit element and the
          existence of additive inverse and neutral element is expressed
          together via imposing solubility of a+X=b for all a,b.]



          In addition, one also finds 'Integritätsbereich' there with a
          different meaning than 'Ring'; namely as commutaitve ring without
          zero-divisors (yet not necessarily with unit element, so somewhat
          deviating from current usage and Steinitz).



          I think one can make an argument that the structure is now called ring
          because it is called like that in 'Moderne Algebra', and one can note
          that also the naming of integral domain survived. (Except for slight
          deviation with unit element, but which until today is not quite
          uniform.)



          And, it seems reasonable to assume that the naming of Artin, Noether,
          van der Waerden as for Franekel is directly inspired by Hilbert. After
          all, a ring has (just) the main properties mentioned by Hilbert for
          his 'rings', closed under addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
          What I do not know is whether there is any earlier axiomatization of
          ring in (or at least closer than Fraenkel's to) the current sense.
          Fraenkel's



          To sum it up, this is all but a 'definite' answer, but I hope it
          contains some relevant information. In my opinion, it could be
          difficult, possibly even impossible, to ascertain what precisely
          motivated the choice of name and even more so to really pin down why
          one name survived and another not (say, Integritätsbereich did,
          Rationalitätsbereich did not). It could however be interesting to
          research literature and in particular lecture notes, if existant, of
          the beginning 20th century to see the development in more detail.



          Still, ring seems like a good word as there are some potential
          intuitions (this circling back and the residue classes), also it is
          short and was I think quite different from preexisting names.




          Source: https://mathoverflow.net/questions/117292/why-is-a-ring-called-a-ring







          share|cite|improve this answer












          share|cite|improve this answer



          share|cite|improve this answer










          answered Mar 24 at 18:30









          StammeringMathematicianStammeringMathematician

          2,7951324




          2,7951324





















              0












              $begingroup$

              I have long wondered about the use of the term "field" in algebra. Here is what I have learned.



              The original term for such a structure, due to Dedekind, is "Zahlenkörper", which is German for "body of numbers"; it is now usually shortened to "Körper". Several other European languages use analogous terms for the same algebraic structure; e.g. "corps" in French and "cuerpo" in Spanish. Another early term, no longer in use, was Kronecker's "Rationalitaetsbereich", which means something like "realm of rationalities".



              Wikipedia suggests the earliest use of the term "field" in English was due to E.H. Moore in 1893, but I recall seeing a usage by H.J.S. Smith, who died a decade earlier (I have, unfortunately, lost the reference). It is not clear why "field" (which is indeed a possible rendering of "Bereich") was used instead of "body".



              A number of languages now use terms that correspond to the English "field"; e.g. "поле" in Russian and "campo" in Italian.






              share|cite|improve this answer









              $endgroup$

















                0












                $begingroup$

                I have long wondered about the use of the term "field" in algebra. Here is what I have learned.



                The original term for such a structure, due to Dedekind, is "Zahlenkörper", which is German for "body of numbers"; it is now usually shortened to "Körper". Several other European languages use analogous terms for the same algebraic structure; e.g. "corps" in French and "cuerpo" in Spanish. Another early term, no longer in use, was Kronecker's "Rationalitaetsbereich", which means something like "realm of rationalities".



                Wikipedia suggests the earliest use of the term "field" in English was due to E.H. Moore in 1893, but I recall seeing a usage by H.J.S. Smith, who died a decade earlier (I have, unfortunately, lost the reference). It is not clear why "field" (which is indeed a possible rendering of "Bereich") was used instead of "body".



                A number of languages now use terms that correspond to the English "field"; e.g. "поле" in Russian and "campo" in Italian.






                share|cite|improve this answer









                $endgroup$















                  0












                  0








                  0





                  $begingroup$

                  I have long wondered about the use of the term "field" in algebra. Here is what I have learned.



                  The original term for such a structure, due to Dedekind, is "Zahlenkörper", which is German for "body of numbers"; it is now usually shortened to "Körper". Several other European languages use analogous terms for the same algebraic structure; e.g. "corps" in French and "cuerpo" in Spanish. Another early term, no longer in use, was Kronecker's "Rationalitaetsbereich", which means something like "realm of rationalities".



                  Wikipedia suggests the earliest use of the term "field" in English was due to E.H. Moore in 1893, but I recall seeing a usage by H.J.S. Smith, who died a decade earlier (I have, unfortunately, lost the reference). It is not clear why "field" (which is indeed a possible rendering of "Bereich") was used instead of "body".



                  A number of languages now use terms that correspond to the English "field"; e.g. "поле" in Russian and "campo" in Italian.






                  share|cite|improve this answer









                  $endgroup$



                  I have long wondered about the use of the term "field" in algebra. Here is what I have learned.



                  The original term for such a structure, due to Dedekind, is "Zahlenkörper", which is German for "body of numbers"; it is now usually shortened to "Körper". Several other European languages use analogous terms for the same algebraic structure; e.g. "corps" in French and "cuerpo" in Spanish. Another early term, no longer in use, was Kronecker's "Rationalitaetsbereich", which means something like "realm of rationalities".



                  Wikipedia suggests the earliest use of the term "field" in English was due to E.H. Moore in 1893, but I recall seeing a usage by H.J.S. Smith, who died a decade earlier (I have, unfortunately, lost the reference). It is not clear why "field" (which is indeed a possible rendering of "Bereich") was used instead of "body".



                  A number of languages now use terms that correspond to the English "field"; e.g. "поле" in Russian and "campo" in Italian.







                  share|cite|improve this answer












                  share|cite|improve this answer



                  share|cite|improve this answer










                  answered Mar 24 at 19:14









                  FredHFredH

                  3,7401024




                  3,7401024



























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