The Man Who Counted
Encyclopedia
The Man Who Counted is a book
on recreational mathematics
and curious word problem
s by Brazil
ian writer
Júlio César de Mello e Souza
, published under the pen name
Malba Tahan
. Since its first publication in 1949, the book has been immensely popular in Brazil and abroad, not only among mathematics
teachers but among the general public as well.
The book has been published in many other languages, including Catalan, English (in the UK
and in the U.S.
), German, Italian, and Spanish, and is recommended as a paradidactic source in many countries. It earned his author a prize by the Brazilian Literary Academy
.
s and curiosities. The book is ostensibly a translation by Brazilian scholar Breno de Alencar Bianco of an original manuscript by Malba Tahan, a thirteenth century Persian
scholar of the Islamic Empire
— both equally fictitious.
The first two chapters tell how Malba Tahan was traveling from Samarra
to Baghdad
when he met Beremiz Samir
, a young lad with amazing mathematical abilities. The traveler then invited Beremiz to come with him to Baghdad, where a man with his abilities will certainly find profitable employment. The rest of the book tells various incidents that befell the two men along the road and in Baghdad. In all those events, Beremiz Samir uses his abilities with calculation like a magic wand
to amaze and entertain people, settle disputes, and find wise and just solutions to seemingly unsolvable problems.
In the first incident along their trip (chapter III), Beremiz settles a heated inheritance dispute between three brothers. Their father had left them 35 camels, of which 1/2 (17.5 camels) should go to his eldest son, 1/3 (11.666... camels) to the middle one, and 1/9 (3.888... camels) to the youngest. To solve brother's dilemma, Beremiz convinces Malba to donate his only camel to the dead man's estate. Then, with 36 camels, Beremiz gives 18, 12, and 4 animals to the three heirs, making all of them profit with the new share. Of the remaining two camels, one is returned to Malba, and the other is claimed by Beremiz as his reward.
The translator's notes observe that a variant of this problem, with 17 camels to be divided in the same proportions, is found in hundreds of recreational mathematics books, such as those of E. Fourrey (1949) and G. Boucheny (1939). However, the 17-camel version leaves only one camel at the end, with no net profit for the estate's executor.
At the end of the book, Beremiz uses his abilities to win the hand of his student and secret love Telassim, the daughter of one of the Caliph's advisers. (The caliph mentioned is Al-Musta'sim
, and the time period ends with the Abbasid
dynasty's collapse.)
In the last chapter we learn that Malba Tahan and Beremiz eventually moved to Constantinople
, and there they lived long and pleasant lives.
The fifty fourth printing by Editora Record (2001) contains 164 pages of Malba Tahan's text, plus 60 pages of notes and historical appendices, commented solutions to all the problems, a glossary of Arabic terms, alphabetical index, and other material.
The book was translated into Arabic in 2005 by Mrs. Azza Kubba, an Iraqi from Baghdad (published by Al-Jamel Publishing House, Cologne, Germany).
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
on recreational mathematics
Recreational mathematics
Recreational mathematics is an umbrella term, referring to mathematical puzzles and mathematical games.Not all problems in this field require a knowledge of advanced mathematics, and thus, recreational mathematics often attracts the curiosity of non-mathematicians, and inspires their further study...
and curious word problem
Word problem (mathematics education)
In mathematics education, the term word problem is often used to refer to any math exercise where significant background information on the problem is presented as text rather than in mathematical notation...
s by Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
Júlio César de Mello e Souza
Júlio César de Mello e Souza
Júlio César de Mello e Souza , was a Brazilian writer and mathematics professor. He is well known in Brazil and abroad by his books on recreational mathematics, most of them published under the pen names of Malba Tahan and Breno de Alencar Bianco.He has been called by one biographer "the only...
, published under the pen name
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
Malba Tahan
Malba Tahan
Malba Tahan, full name Ali Yezzid Izz-Edin ibn-Salim Hanak Malba Tahan, was a fictitious Persian scholar. He was the creation and frequent pen name of Brazilian author Júlio César de Mello e Souza.-Biography:...
. Since its first publication in 1949, the book has been immensely popular in Brazil and abroad, not only among mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
teachers but among the general public as well.
The book has been published in many other languages, including Catalan, English (in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
), German, Italian, and Spanish, and is recommended as a paradidactic source in many countries. It earned his author a prize by the Brazilian Literary Academy
Academia Brasileira de Letras
Academia Brasileira de Letras is a Brazilian literary non-profit society established at the end of the 19th century by a group of 40 writers and poets inspired by the Académie Française. The first president, Machado de Assis, declared its foundation on December 15, 1896, with the statutes being...
.
Plot summary
First published in Brazil in 1949, The Man Who Calculated is a series of tales in the style of the Arabian Nights, but revolving around mathematical puzzleMathematical game
A mathematical game is a multiplayer game whose rules, strategies, and outcomes can be studied and explained by mathematics. Examples of such games are Tic-tac-toe and Dots and Boxes, to name a couple. On the surface, a game need not seem mathematical or complicated to still be a mathematical game...
s and curiosities. The book is ostensibly a translation by Brazilian scholar Breno de Alencar Bianco of an original manuscript by Malba Tahan, a thirteenth century Persian
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
scholar of the Islamic Empire
Caliphate
The term caliphate, "dominion of a caliph " , refers to the first system of government established in Islam and represented the political unity of the Muslim Ummah...
— both equally fictitious.
The first two chapters tell how Malba Tahan was traveling from Samarra
Samarra
Sāmarrā is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Salah ad-Din Governorate, north of Baghdad and, in 2003, had an estimated population of 348,700....
to Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
when he met Beremiz Samir
Beremiz Samir
Beremiz Samir, nicknamed The Man Who Counted or The Man who Calculated, was a fictitious Persian mathematician of the 13th century, created by Brazilian writer Júlio César de Mello e Souza....
, a young lad with amazing mathematical abilities. The traveler then invited Beremiz to come with him to Baghdad, where a man with his abilities will certainly find profitable employment. The rest of the book tells various incidents that befell the two men along the road and in Baghdad. In all those events, Beremiz Samir uses his abilities with calculation like a magic wand
Wand
A wand is a thin, straight, hand-held stick of wood, stone, ivory, or metal. Generally, in modern language, wands are ceremonial and/or have associations with magic but there have been other uses, all stemming from the original meaning as a synonym of rod and virge, both of which had a similar...
to amaze and entertain people, settle disputes, and find wise and just solutions to seemingly unsolvable problems.
In the first incident along their trip (chapter III), Beremiz settles a heated inheritance dispute between three brothers. Their father had left them 35 camels, of which 1/2 (17.5 camels) should go to his eldest son, 1/3 (11.666... camels) to the middle one, and 1/9 (3.888... camels) to the youngest. To solve brother's dilemma, Beremiz convinces Malba to donate his only camel to the dead man's estate. Then, with 36 camels, Beremiz gives 18, 12, and 4 animals to the three heirs, making all of them profit with the new share. Of the remaining two camels, one is returned to Malba, and the other is claimed by Beremiz as his reward.
The translator's notes observe that a variant of this problem, with 17 camels to be divided in the same proportions, is found in hundreds of recreational mathematics books, such as those of E. Fourrey (1949) and G. Boucheny (1939). However, the 17-camel version leaves only one camel at the end, with no net profit for the estate's executor.
At the end of the book, Beremiz uses his abilities to win the hand of his student and secret love Telassim, the daughter of one of the Caliph's advisers. (The caliph mentioned is Al-Musta'sim
Al-Musta'sim
Al-Musta'sim Billah was the last Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad; he ruled from 1242 until his death.-Biography:...
, and the time period ends with the Abbasid
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate or, more simply, the Abbasids , was the third of the Islamic caliphates. It was ruled by the Abbasid dynasty of caliphs, who built their capital in Baghdad after overthrowing the Umayyad caliphate from all but the al-Andalus region....
dynasty's collapse.)
In the last chapter we learn that Malba Tahan and Beremiz eventually moved to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, and there they lived long and pleasant lives.
Publishing history
The "translator's note" signed "B. A. Bianco" is dated from 1965. The preface signed "Malba Tahan" is dated "Baghdad, 19 of the Moon of Ramadan of 1321".The fifty fourth printing by Editora Record (2001) contains 164 pages of Malba Tahan's text, plus 60 pages of notes and historical appendices, commented solutions to all the problems, a glossary of Arabic terms, alphabetical index, and other material.
The book was translated into Arabic in 2005 by Mrs. Azza Kubba, an Iraqi from Baghdad (published by Al-Jamel Publishing House, Cologne, Germany).