Abelian group facts for kids

In group theory, an abelian group is a group that is commutative.

Definition

An abelian group is a set, A, together with an operation "•". It combines any two elements a and b to form another element denoted a • b. For the group to be abelian, the operation and the elements (A, •) must follow some requirements. These are known as the abelian group axioms:

Closure

For all a, b in A, the result of the operation a • b is also in A.

Associativity

For all a, b and c in A, the equation (a • b) • c = a • (b • c) is true.

Identity element

There exists an element e in A, such that for all elements a in A, the equation e • a = a • e = a holds.

Inverse element

For each a in A, there exists an element b in A such that a • b = b • a = e, where e is the identity element.

Commutativity

For all a, b in A, a • b = b • a.

An abelian group is a commutative group. A group in which the group operation is not commutative is called a "non-abelian group" or "non-commutative group".

See also

In Spanish: Grupo abeliano para niños