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Wikipedia credits Bourbaki with coining it, but doesn't provide a source. Does anyone happen to know the motivation for using this term?

quid
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asked Jul 25 at 22:17

Perhaps you should add the (ho.history-overview) tag? – Alex Becker Jul 25 at 22:33

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One theory I've seen is that the term comes from the (perceived) primordial, amorphous nature of molten rock – Yemon Choi Jul 25 at 22:36

A similar thing was asked here english.stackexchange.com/questions/63210/… – quid Jul 25 at 22:48

My answer seems to agree with the stack exchange one. – Benjamin Steinberg Jul 25 at 22:52

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So it isn't a typo for gamma? Gerhard "Commutative Algebra Is For Lysdexics" Paseman, 2012.07.25 – Gerhard Paseman Jul 25 at 23:47

Benjamin Steinberg · Accepted Answer · 2012-07-25 22:51:01Z UTC

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The second definition in http://www.larousse.com/en/dictionnaires/francais/magma/48543 would seem to answer your question and agrees with the wiki page.

answered Jul 25 at 22:51

community wiki

	Interesting that the French use the word in several ways, but English has only the one meaning, the geological. – Lubin Jul 26 at 5:15
	This definitely seems like the most likely explanation. Thanks a lot! – Xander Flood Aug 5 at 20:33

What is the origin of the term magma?