Editing Hypercomplex number (section)

{{Short description|Element of a unital algebra over the field of real numbers}}
{{Distinguish|surcomplex number}}
{{Redirect|Hypernumber|the extension of the real numbers used in [[non-standard analysis]]|Hyperreal number}}
In [[mathematics]], '''hypercomplex number''' is a traditional term for an [[element (mathematics)|element]] of a finite-dimensional [[Algebra over a field#Unital algebra|unital]] [[algebra over a field|algebra]] over the [[field (mathematics)|field]] of [[real number]]s. 
The study of hypercomplex numbers in the late 19th century forms the basis of modern [[group representation]] theory.