Square root of a negative number squared √x^2=|x|,
What about √-x^2 ?
If we use the number $5$ as en example,
would this evaluate to √-5^2 = √25 =5
OR do we need to get the imaginary number 'i' involved, resulting in √-5^2 = 5i
I have found many conflicting answers
Any clarification on the topic would be much appreciated
Kind Regards

There is a HUGE difference between
$$(\sqrt{-5})^2$$
which is not a well defined expression because the square root is a function only defined on the positive real numbers (and can be expanded to the whole complex numbers, but it is not trivial and there actually exist multiple expansions of the function, since both $i^2$ and $(-i)^2$ evaluate to $-1$)
and $$\sqrt{(-5)^2}$$
which is equal to $5$ since $\sqrt{25}=5$.
