who discovered algebra

Direct answer: The person most commonly credited with founding algebra is Muhammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī, a 9th-century Persian mathematician working in the Abbasid caliphate. His work on solving linear and quadratic equations, compiled in the treatise often titled Al-Jabr wa-l-Muqābala, established algebra as a distinct mathematical discipline and popularized methods of reduction and balancing. For this reason, he is frequently described as the father or founder of algebra. Other ancient contributions (notably from Babylonian, Indian, and Greek sources) laid foundational ideas that influenced later algebra, but al-Khwārizmī’s systematic approach and the very term algebra (from al-jabr) solidified his central role in the discipline’s emergence.