Chinese Zhusuan, Knowledge and Practices of Mathematical Calculation Through the Abacus中國(guó)珠算

熊娟娟

中國(guó)珠算是中華民族的重大發(fā)明，對(duì)中華民族的經(jīng)濟(jì)、文化等發(fā)展起到了不可磨滅的作用。珠算文化不僅沉淀著古人千年的智慧，同時(shí)對(duì)今人的思維邏輯也有很大的啟發(fā)。2013 年12 月，中國(guó)珠算被正式列入《人類非物質(zhì)文化遺產(chǎn)代表作名錄》。

Zhusuan refers to an old method of performing 1）arithmeticcalculations with an abacus， which is called suanpan in Chinese.

The origin of Zhusuan dates back thousands of years to ancientChina. According to 2）archaeological research， the earliest formsof abacuses can be traced back to the Shang Dynasty in the 14thcentury BC. The term Zhusuan first appeared in a book entitledSupplementary Notes on the Art of Figures， written by Xu Yue， a wellknownmathematician and astronomer of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Zhusuan was extensively applied in ancient China for commercial3）transactions， 4）financial management， tax calculations， and otherfields. It has been considered an important skill in Chinese cultureand incorporated into the educational system.

The Chinese abacus， as the elementary counting tool of Zhusuan，is simple yet ingenious. Its main body consists of a wooden frame，typically with a horizontal beam and 5）vertical rods. On each verticalrod， there are usually seven beads. By manipulating the positionof the beads， various mathematical calculations such as addition，subtraction， multiplication， and division can be performed. Manyadvanced concepts and techniques are involved in the calculatingprocess， like positional notation， multiples， and vertical calculation.

Using the abacus to calculate requires a high level ofconcentration and flexibility during calculations. Operators， based ontheir mastery of the place value of different beads and computationrules， utilize the abacus to perform calculations swiftly and accuratelyby means of verbal or mental arithmetic skills.

The advantages of Zhusuan lie in its 6）efficiency and visualnature. Compared to modern electronic calculators， Zhusuan allows?users to understand mathematical concepts and computationalprocesses through hands-on manipulation and sliding of beads. Itnot only cultivates thinking abilities， logical reasoning， and calculationspeed but also enhances attention， concentration， and patience.

Although the 7）prevalence of calculators and computers has ledto a decline in the use of the abacus， there is still a strong passionand interest for Zhusuan in China. Zhusuan has become an essentialpart of fine traditional Chinese culture.

As a time-honored traditional method of calculation， Zhusuantoday continues to contribute to “the advancement of calculatingtechniques， cognitive schema， educational psychology and intellectualdevelopment”， concludes UNESCO.

1） arithmetic n. 算術(shù)

2） archaeological adj. 考古的

3） transaction n. 交易

4） financial adj. 金融的

5） vertical adj. 垂直的

6） efficiency n. 效率

7） prevalence n. 流行；盛行

珠算是一種以算盤為工具進(jìn)行數(shù)學(xué)計(jì)算的古老方法。

珠算起源于中國(guó)古代，至今已有數(shù)千年的歷史。據(jù)考古研究，最早的算盤可以追溯到公元前14 世紀(jì)的商代時(shí)期。“珠算”一詞最早出現(xiàn)在《數(shù)術(shù)記遺》一書中，該書由東漢時(shí)期著名的數(shù)學(xué)家和天文學(xué)家徐岳所撰。

珠算在中國(guó)古代廣泛應(yīng)用于商業(yè)交易、財(cái)務(wù)管理、稅收計(jì)算和其他領(lǐng)域。它在中國(guó)文化中被視為一種重要的技能，并被納入教育體系中。

珠算借助算盤這一基礎(chǔ)工具進(jìn)行計(jì)算。算盤的結(jié)構(gòu)簡(jiǎn)單而精巧。它的主體部分由一個(gè)木制框架組成，通常由橫梁和豎柱構(gòu)成。在每個(gè)豎柱上，有七個(gè)珠子。通過(guò)移動(dòng)珠子的位置，可以進(jìn)行加、減、乘、除等各種數(shù)學(xué)運(yùn)算。許多高級(jí)的概念和技巧，如進(jìn)位制、倍數(shù)和豎式計(jì)算等也在計(jì)算過(guò)程中得以應(yīng)用。

使用算盤計(jì)算需要高度的注意力和靈活性。操作者通過(guò)掌握不同珠子的位值和運(yùn)算規(guī)則，在口算或心算的基礎(chǔ)上，使用算盤快速而準(zhǔn)確地完成計(jì)算。

珠算的優(yōu)勢(shì)在其高效性和可視化特點(diǎn)。相較于現(xiàn)代電子計(jì)算器，珠算可以幫助使用者通過(guò)觸摸和滑動(dòng)珠子的實(shí)際操作來(lái)理解數(shù)學(xué)概念和計(jì)算過(guò)程。它不僅可以培養(yǎng)人的思維能力、邏輯推理能力和運(yùn)算能力，還有助于提高注意力、集中精力和培養(yǎng)耐心。

盡管計(jì)算器和電腦的普及使算盤的使用逐漸減少，然而，中國(guó)仍有很多人對(duì)珠算葆有熱愛(ài)和興趣。珠算已成為中華優(yōu)秀傳統(tǒng)文化的重要組成部分。

作為一種歷史悠久的傳統(tǒng)計(jì)算法，時(shí)至今日，珠算繼續(xù)做著貢獻(xiàn)，就像聯(lián)合國(guó)教科文組織所總結(jié)的，“珠算有助于提升計(jì)算技巧、認(rèn)知模式、教育心理學(xué)及智力開(kāi)發(fā)”。