From the Greek word "ABAX", meaning "calculating board" or "calculating table", comes the modern English word abacus. Invented by the Chinese, the first record of the abacus was from a sketch of one in a book from the Yuan Dynasty (14th Century). Its Mandarin name is "Suan Pan" which means "calculating plate". Its inventor is unknown, but the abacus is often referred to as the "first computer" because it was used as a mathematical model for early electronic computers.

In Asian countries it is not unusual to see shopkeepers and street vendors using an abacus to calculate invoices, especially where electricity is not convenient. Some elderly residents actually prefer the abacus over newer electronic devices. The calculations made on an abacus are immediate, with the device retaining the results in "visual storage" much like a computer display. All one has to do is read off the answer. Some say that since it has a better "keyboard" than the western calculators, and that the abacus is actually faster when working with large amounts of numbers.

While westerns are used to seeing "miniature" abacus models in gift shops, usually made of brass, the preferred models are larger (around 10" wide), with frame and beads made of good quality, well-seasoned wood. The abacus can be used to add, subtract, multiply, and divide as well as work with sophisticated mathematical problems such as fractions and square roots.