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Does anybody know where the symbol $\partial$ comes from?

(preferably with sources or with a document where it was used first)

Symbol in context:

$$f\colon \mathbb{R}^2\rightarrow \mathbb{R}$$

$$f(x,y):= x^2 + y^2$$

$$\frac{\partial f(x,y)}{\partial y} = f_y = \lim_{h \to 0}\frac{f(x,y + h) - f(x,y)}{h} = 2 \cdot y$$

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    See also: http://jeff560.tripod.com/calculus.html and for such questions Cajori's book on the *History of mathematical notation* is always worth consulting.2012-09-16
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    I can't answer this, but I wonder if I can persuade people to write \partial x\,\partial y instead of \partial x\partial y?2012-09-16

2 Answers 2