\textit{māl}, enunciations, and the prehistory of Arabic algebra (Q2576312)

The paper contains a study of the term \textit{māl} in the algebra texts of al-Khwārīzmī, Abu Kāmīl, and Ibn Badr. The problem is that the term appears in two meanings: one as general ``quantity'' (corresponding to its general meaning ``riches, money''), the other as ``square''. A great number of examples are given, in Arabic and translation, of the characteristic use which allows one to distinguish between the different uses of the term. \{Although no hamza is written, one has to wonder whether the old authors did not make a difference between \textit{māl} ``riches'' for ``quantity'' and \textit{ma'al} ``fat and corpulent'' for ``square''\}?