For an arbitrary field k, a reductive group G is called split if it contains a split maximal torus over k (that is, a split torus in G which remains maximal over an algebraic closure of k). For example, GL(n) is a split reductive group over any field k. Chevalley showed that the classification of split reductive groups is the same over any field. By contrast, the classification of arbitrary reductive groups can be hard, depending on the base field. For example, every nondegenerate quadratic form q over a field k determines a reductive group SO(q), and every central simple algebra A over k determines a reductive group SL1(A). As a result, the problem of classifying reductive groups over k essentially includes the problem of classifying all quadratic forms over k or all central simple algebras over k. These problems are easy for k algebraically closed, and they are understood for some other fields such as number fields, but for arbitrary fields there are many open questions.
