Editing Number (section)

===Rational numbers {{anchor|History of rational numbers}}===
It is likely that the concept of fractional numbers dates to [[prehistoric times]]. The [[Ancient Egyptians]] used their [[Egyptian fraction]] notation for rational numbers in mathematical texts such as the [[Rhind Mathematical Papyrus]] and the [[Kahun Papyrus]]. Classical Greek and Indian mathematicians made studies of the theory of rational numbers, as part of the general study of [[number theory]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Classical Greek culture (article) |url=https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/world-history/ancient-medieval/classical-greece/a/greek-culture |access-date=2022-05-04 |website=Khan Academy |language=en |archive-date=2022-05-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220504133917/https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/world-history/ancient-medieval/classical-greece/a/greek-culture |url-status=live }}</ref> The best known of these is [[Euclid's Elements|Euclid's ''Elements'']], dating to roughly 300&nbsp;BC. Of the Indian texts, the most relevant is the [[Sthananga Sutra]], which also covers number theory as part of a general study of mathematics.

The concept of [[decimal fraction]]s is closely linked with decimal place-value notation; the two seem to have developed in tandem. For example, it is common for the Jain math [[sutra]] to include calculations of decimal-fraction approximations to [[pi]] or the [[square root of 2]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2020}} Similarly, Babylonian math texts used sexagesimal (base&nbsp;60) fractions with great frequency.