wasan

Japanese mathematics

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July 23, 2026

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Wasan, or Japanese mathematics, flourished from the 17th century until the mid-19th century. It was heavily influenced by Chinese mathematical methods, with early Japanese texts like Yoshida Mitsuyoshi's Jingoki (1627) popularizing the use of the soroban (an abacus) and introducing Chinese mathematical concepts in Japanese.12

A pivotal figure in wasan is Seki Takakazu, considered the founder of this tradition. Seki built upon Chinese algebra, developing powerful new tools and methods. He introduced a tabular notation system to simplify the handling of equations with multiple unknowns and extended methods for finding roots of polynomial equations. His work, disseminated by his disciples, significantly advanced Japanese mathematics, leading to new directions in areas like infinite series.13

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East Asian mathematics
The elaboration of Chinese methods
…Japanese tradition of mathematics, or wasan. Seki founded what became the most important school of mathematics in Japan. (At this time, mathematics was widely practiced in Japan as a leisure activity.) As in other schools, disciples had to keep the school methods secret, and only the best among them knew…
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…Japanese tradition of mathematics, or wasan. Seki founded what became the most important school of mathematics in Japan. (At this time, mathematics was widely practiced in Japan as a leisure activity.) As in other schools, disciples had to keep the school methods secret, and only the best among them knew…
Read More

Seki Takakazu
…most important figure of the wasan (“Japanese calculation”) tradition (see mathematics, East Asian: Japan in the 17th century) that flourished from the early 17th century until the opening of Japan to the West in the mid-19th century. Seki was instrumental in recovering neglected and forgotten mathematical knowledge from ancient Chinese…
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…most important figure of the wasan (“Japanese calculation”) tradition (see mathematics, East Asian: Japan in the 17th century) that flourished from the early 17th century until the opening of Japan to the West in the mid-19th century. Seki was instrumental in recovering neglected and forgotten mathematical knowledge from ancient Chinese…
Read More