Editing Abacus (section)

===Russia===
[[File:Schoty abacus.jpg|thumb|Russian schoty]]
The Russian abacus, the ''schoty'' ({{Langx|ru|счёты}}, plural from {{Langx|ru|счёт}}, counting), usually has a single slanted deck, with ten beads on each wire (except one wire with four beads for quarter-[[ruble]] fractions). 4-bead wire was introduced for quarter-[[Russian ruble|kopek]]s, which were minted until 1916.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Sokolov |first1=Viatcheslav |last2=Karelskaia |first2=Svetlana |last3=Zuga |first3=Ekaterina |date=February 2023 |title=The schoty (abacus) as the phenomenon of Russian accounting |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/10323732221132005 |journal=Accounting History |language=en |volume=28 |issue=1 |pages=90–118 |doi=10.1177/10323732221132005 |s2cid=256789240 |issn=1032-3732}}</ref> The Russian abacus is used vertically, with each wire running horizontally. The wires are usually bowed upward in the center, to keep the beads pinned to either side. It is cleared when all the beads are moved to the right. During manipulation, beads are moved to the left. For easy viewing, the middle 2 beads on each wire (the 5th and 6th bead) usually are of a different color from the other eight. Likewise, the left bead of the thousands wire (and the million wire, if present) may have a different color.

The Russian abacus was in use in shops and markets throughout the [[Commonwealth of Independent States|former Soviet Union]], and its usage was taught in most schools until the 1990s.<ref>{{harvnb|Burnett|Ryan|1998|p=7}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Hudgins|2004|p=219}}</ref> Even the 1874 invention of [[mechanical calculator]], [[Odhner Arithmometer|Odhner arithmometer]], had not replaced them in Russia. According to [[Yakov Perelman]], some businessmen attempting to import calculators into the Russian Empire were known to leave in despair after watching  a skilled abacus operator.<ref>''Arithmetic for Entertainment'', [[Yakov Perelman]], page 51.</ref> Likewise, the mass production of Felix [[arithmometer]]s since 1924 did not significantly reduce abacus use in the [[Soviet Union]].<ref>{{harvnb|Leushina|1991|p=427}}</ref> The Russian abacus began to lose popularity only after the mass production of domestic [[Pocket calculator|microcalculators]] in 1974.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1975 |title=The Abacus Today |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/30211432 |journal=Mathematics in School |volume=4 |issue=5 |pages=18–19 |jstor=30211432 |issn=0305-7259}}</ref>

The Russian abacus was brought to France around 1820 by mathematician [[Jean-Victor Poncelet]], who had served in [[Napoleon]]'s army and had been a [[prisoner of war]] in Russia.<ref>{{harvnb|Trogeman|Ernst|2001|p=24}}</ref> To Poncelet's French contemporaries, it was something new. Poncelet used it, not for any applied purpose, but as a teaching and demonstration aid.<ref>{{harvnb|Flegg|1983|p=72}}</ref> The [[Turkic peoples|Turks]] and the [[Armenians|Armenian]] people used abacuses similar to the Russian schoty. It was named a ''coulba'' by the Turks and a ''choreb'' by the Armenians.<ref>{{harvnb|Williams|1997|p=64}}</ref>