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Aryabhata's Algorithm for the Square Root of an Integer

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This Demonstration shows the different steps in the "longhand" or manual calculation of integer square roots. The integer square root of a number is the greatest integer less than or equal to .

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The algorithm used was discovered in 520 AD by the Indian mathematician Aryabhata. It is still used today for longhand calculations of integer square roots.

The main part of the algorithm is the function findLargest, which calculates the successive digits of the integer square root. For the group of two digits , the number is the largest integer for which .

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Contributed by: Erik Mahieu (March 2011)
Open content licensed under CC BY-NC-SA

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