Noun
p-adic absolute value (plural p-adic absolute values)
(number theory, field theory) A norm for the rational numbers, with some prime number p as parameter, such that any rational number of the form p(a/b) — where a, b and k are integers and a, b and p are coprime — is mapped to the rational number p and 0 is mapped to 0. (Note: any nonzero rational number can be reduced to such a form.)
According to Ostrowski's theorem, only three kinds of norms are possible for the set of real numbers: the trivial absolute value, the real absolute value, and the p-adic absolute value.