The origin of the abacus is not certified by many of the historians. They still argue about the exact origin of the abacus. Some of the historians say that the Chinese first introduced the abacus and some speak in the favor of the Babylonians. It is said that the abacus was first used about 5000B.C. 

The first abacus used was not in the shape we see them today. It was a smooth simple surface on which the sand was spread and working was done using the stylus or the finger. Pebbles were also used instead of sand.

The counting was done with the help of reference to the pebbles. The concept underlying the abacus is that one set of objects standing in for objects in another set and also a concept of a single object standing for a collection of objects-positional notation.

A simple concept underlying the calculation procedure was most responsive to the primitive needs of the people. People from the past needed to keep the record of their assets especially their livestock. For this purpose they used stones, each stone represented one animal and number of stones in the piles represents the whole lot of livestock

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