ENGLISH
REFERENCE

abelian

adj.
C2 Proficiency abelian Archaic

adj. describing a group where the order of the numbers or elements does not matter. In math, this means 2 + 3 is the same as 3 + 2.

adj. relating to a group in which the binary operation is commutative. In such a group, the order of the operands does not affect the result of the operation.


SIMPLE

The set of integers forms an abelian group under addition.

CONTEXTUAL

In an abelian group, every pair of elements commutes, meaning that the group operation is symmetric.

COMPLEX

The classification of finite abelian groups is a fundamental result in algebra, showing that every such group is a direct sum of cyclic groups of prime power order.

Origin

From Abel + -ian.

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