Babylonian mathematics

Babylonian mathematics was the mathematical practice of ancient Mesopotamia, recorded chiefly on clay tablets in cuneiform. It used a place-value system based on 60 and addressed calculation, measurement, and astronomy.

Sexagesimal: A positional numeral system with base 60. Babylonian notation used place value in base 60, enabling compact calculations with fractions.
Plimpton 322: An Old Babylonian clay tablet listing number pairs related to right triangles. Its entries demonstrate sophisticated numerical relationships often connected with Babylonian triangle calculations.
Babylonian astronomy: The observation and mathematical study of celestial bodies in ancient Babylonia. Astronomers used numerical schemes to predict planetary and lunar phenomena.
Old Babylonian period: A Mesopotamian historical period, roughly the early second millennium BCE, associated with the First Dynasty of Babylon. Many of the best-preserved mathematical school tablets date to this period.
Babylonian numerals: The signs and place-value conventions used to write numbers in Babylonian cuneiform. Their base-60 structure survives in familiar divisions of time and angle.
Cuneiform: A writing system made from wedge-shaped marks pressed into clay or other materials. Scribes recorded mathematical problems and tables by impressing numerals and signs into clay.
YBC 7289: An Old Babylonian tablet containing a diagram and an approximation for the diagonal of a square. It records a remarkably accurate base-60 approximation to the square root of 2.
Astronomical diary: A Babylonian cuneiform record of nightly astronomical observations and related events. Diaries preserve the observational data that informed Babylonian mathematical astronomy.
Sumerian mathematics: The numerical and metrological practices used by Sumerian-speaking societies in ancient Mesopotamia. Earlier Mesopotamian accounting and measurement traditions formed part of the background to later mathematics.
Babylonian calendar astronomy: The use of mathematical astronomy to regulate and interpret the Babylonian calendar. Numerical prediction helped coordinate calendar adjustments and celestial observation.

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