Dictionary

cossist en · ADJ

Etymology

From Italian cossista, from the word cosa (“thing”), in reference to an unknown quantity to be determined + -ista. See rule of coss.

Meanings

1. (not-comparable) Pertaining to the cossists and their methods; cossic.
   • Cossist algebra constituted essentially a sophisticated form of arithmetical problem-solving. Often it is difficult when reading a cossist text to discern where computational arithmetic leaves off and algebra begins. 2018, Michael Sean Mahoney, The Mathematical Career of Pierre de Fermat, 1601-1665), page 5:
   • Clavius's treatise is, first of all, reckoned as one of the textbooks of cossist algebra. 1989, Chikara Sasaki, Descartes's Mathematical Thought, page 90:

cossist en · NOUN

Etymology

From Italian cossista, from the word cosa (“thing”), in reference to an unknown quantity to be determined + -ista. See rule of coss.

Meanings

1. (historical) A practitioner of proto-algebra in Renaissance and Early Modern Europe.
   • The word "cossist" comes from the Italian cosa, meaning "thing." The cosa was the mystery that algebra was designed to solve -- it was the name given to the unknown quantity in an equation (our modern x). 2005, Amir D. Aczel, Descartes' Secret Notebook: A True Tale of Mathematics, page 121:
   • So also were trained the Cossists and Rechenmeister of Germany in his tradition. 2014, L. E. Sigler, Leonardo Pisano (Fibonacci): The Book of Squares, page xvii:

Forms