A father leaves 17 camels to his three children with these conditions: - the oldest corresponds to \(1/2\);
- to the second, \(1/3\);
- to the minor, \(1/9\). No camels are allowed to split. How can the distribution be made respecting the will?
Home > Riddles > The inheritance of the 17 camels (Arab tradition)
The inheritance of the 17 camels (Arab tradition)
The heritage of the 17 camels (Arab tradition) comes from the tradition of well-told problems: a simple framework, a clear difficulty and a solution that seems almost obvious when it has already been seen.
Hints
Show hints
- The requested fractions add up to exactly 1 when applied to a convenient number.
- With 17 camels, clean divisions do not come out; with 18, yes.
- Temporarily adding a camel allows you to deliver and then remove it.
Solution
Show full solution
Answer: a camel is temporarily added to work on 18. Explanation: With 18 camels, the requested distribution is complete:
- the oldest gets half: 9;
- to the second, one third: 6;
- to the youngest, a ninth: 2. and
$$ 9+6+2=17. $$ This is how the original 17 camels are distributed without breaking any, and the added camel is removed at the end. The beauty of the puzzle is that external help does not change the inheritance: it only makes visible a decomposition that was already implicit. $$
Related riddles
Keep practicing
If you enjoyed this one, try more pure-logic riddles, explore this theme, browse the full archive, or read the riddle-solving guide.