Wikipedia credits Bourbaki with coining it, but doesn't provide a source. Does anyone happen to know the motivation for using this term?
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2$\begingroup$ One theory I've seen is that the term comes from the (perceived) primordial, amorphous nature of molten rock $\endgroup$– Yemon ChoiJul 25, 2012 at 22:36
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$\begingroup$ A similar thing was asked here english.stackexchange.com/questions/63210/… $\endgroup$– user9072Jul 25, 2012 at 22:48
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$\begingroup$ My answer seems to agree with the stack exchange one. $\endgroup$– Benjamin SteinbergJul 25, 2012 at 22:52
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9$\begingroup$ So it isn't a typo for gamma? Gerhard "Commutative Algebra Is For Lysdexics" Paseman, 2012.07.25 $\endgroup$– Gerhard PasemanJul 25, 2012 at 23:47
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2 Answers
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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.
Update: here is what the link said to avoid broken links as YCor pointed out.
magma
nom masculin (latin magma, résidu, du grec magma)Mélange formant une masse pâteuse, épaisse : Magma informe.
Mélange confus, inextricable de choses abstraites : Ces propositions constituent un magma incohérent.
Matériau constitué de liquide et de cristaux en proportions variables, qui se forme à l'intérieur de la Terre et qui, en refroidissant, forme une roche.
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1$\begingroup$ Interesting that the French use the word in several ways, but English has only the one meaning, the geological. $\endgroup$– LubinJul 26, 2012 at 5:15
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$\begingroup$ This definitely seems like the most likely explanation. Thanks a lot! $\endgroup$ Aug 5, 2012 at 20:33
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2$\begingroup$ The link is broken. Possibly it matches with larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais/magma/48543, but copying the contents would prevent the answer become obsolete when the Larousse page is edited. $\endgroup$– YCorApr 8, 2018 at 18:02
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Wikipedia also says that "magma" is used by Serre in his book Lie algebras and lie groups: 1964 Lectures given at Harvard University. This seems to be the case (at least for the 1992 Springer reprint that I have access to.) Is this the earliest use in print of "magma" in this sense?
answered Apr 8, 2018 at 17:45
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$\begingroup$ I will add a link to the current revision of the Wikipedia article in question. (Just in case it changes in the future.) $\endgroup$ Apr 8, 2018 at 18:35
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2$\begingroup$ The first edition of Bourbaki's Algèbre Chapitre 1 dates back to 1942, see iecl.univ-lorraine.fr/~Gerard.Eguether/archives/elements.pdf $\endgroup$ Apr 8, 2018 at 20:05
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2$\begingroup$ There was no mention of magma in that first edition. The first time magma is mentioned is in the Nouvelle Édition, published in 1970. $\endgroup$ Apr 9, 2018 at 7:37
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$\begingroup$ @Georges Elencwajg. Thanks for pointing this out (I didn't have the first edition to check it). This is consistent with the Bourbaki archives sites.mathdoc.fr/archives-bourbaki not mentioning "magma" either. $\endgroup$ Apr 9, 2018 at 8:20
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$\begingroup$ You are welcome, cher @François Brunault. $\endgroup$ Apr 9, 2018 at 9:16