The abacus also called a counting frame, is a calculating tool that is in use centuries before the adoption of the written modern numeral system.
Abacus is a Latin word that has its origins in the Greek words abax or abakon (meaning “table” or “tablet”) which in turn, possibly originated from the Semitic word abq, meaning “sand” 1.
The abacus is a tool used by the Chinese since about 500 BC for the simplest of calculations: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, as well as fractions and square roots. A Chinese abacus is made up of a wood frame divided into two parts separated by a beam, with an upper deck of two rows of beads and a lower deck of five rows of beads. A series of vertical rods allows the wooden beads to slide freely. The abacus as we know it today did not appear in China until about 1200 A.D. Over time the abacus traveled to Japan and evolved into what it is called today: the soroban. A soroban is made up of a wooden frame divided into two parts separated by a beam, with upper deck of one row of beads and a lower deck of four rows of beads.
It is difficult to imagine counting without numbers, but there was a time when written numbers did not exist. The earliest counting device was the human hand and its fingers. Then, as larger quantities (larger than ten human-fingers could represent) were counted, various natural items like pebbles and twigs were used to help count. Merchants who traded goods not only needed a way to count goods they bought and sold, but also to calculate the cost of those goods. Until numbers were invented, counting devices were used to make everyday calculations. The abacus is one of many counting devices invented to help count large numbers.
