Still reading Classical Mechanics by Goldstein, I'm struggling on a very

basic notion: angular momentum. I physically understand it as the

momentum of an object rotating around something given a certain position.
However, I can't give a physical explanation to the formula. Why do we
multiply the linear momentum by the position? Why does the angular
momentum is a function of the position?
I physically understand it as the momentum of an object rotating
around something given a certain position. However, I can't give a
physical explanation to the formula. Why do we multiply the
linear momentum by the position? Why does the angular
momentum is a function of the position?
1) - Angular momentum L=mvr (p * r = arm of the lever)
(This is a late answer, but I hope it can still give you a deeper and
clearer insight into the issue, I imagine that Noether's theorem did
not solve your problems):
It is very simple: in the other question you have understood the
concept of linear momentum, now you have only to join it to the
concept of the lever.

Imagine that ball B is the same ball that in the linear-momentum

question (m = 2 Kg) was travelling at v = 3 m/s and had
momentum = 6 Kg m/s.

Imagine it has a line and a hook hanging and that this hook gets
caught by a peg F. What will happen? B will start to rotate around
the fulcrum F (sketch on the left). The direction of motion will be
perpendicular to the radius (line), therefore the angle will be 90
and its sine will be +1.
In this new scenario (sketch on the right; same as in a lever)
the torque exerted depends also on the radius, the distance of the
body from the fulcrum which is the arm of the lever. The
magnitude of the torque depends on the value of r. A weight of 6
kg will exert a torque of 12 Nm at the distance of 2 m, and you
will have balance only if you put (on the other arm) a weight of 6
Kg at 2 m or a weight of 12 Kg at 1 m.
If you understand the concept of the lever, you can easily
understand the physical explanation of the formula of the angular
momentum. In the same way, if B (m = 2) is rotating
anticlockwise at v = 3 m/s (linear momentum = 6) at distance 2
m from the fulcrum it will have angular momentum (6 * 2 =) 12
Kg * m2/s). If the line hanging from B had been only 1 m long, the
magnitude of L would have been (6 * 1) = 6.
Likewise, if another body A (m =2, v = 3, p = 6) is rotating
clockwise on the other arm, there will not be equilibrium, even
though mass, speed and linear momentum are the same; the
same would happen if a force of 6N is applied at r = 2m and
another opposite force of 6N is applied at r = 1m. Note that B had
angular momentum with reference to F even before it started to
rotate around it all along its trajectory and it always was (p * r)
= 12Kgm2/s.
2) - Definition of L
A body B with velocity (and linear momentum) has
a potential rotational momentum L with reference to/around any
point/body O which does not lie on its trajectory.

The magnitude of L can be found multiplying its linear momentum

(p = m*v) by the distance of point O from the trajectory: r. In the
full formula: L=m[vsind], L is obtained multiplying mass by
tangential velocity Vt=vsin times distance d, but dsin is
always equal to r
3) - Conservation of angular momentum
angular momentum L is conserved if no external torque is exerted
on the system, and this property helps you understand the
importance of radius. When body B is bound to O by a line/rod or
by a non-contact force (like g) it starts rotating around it and
acquires actual rotational momentum L.
If, while rotating around O, B impacts with a similar ball A (m =2,
v = 0), B stops dead and A acquires same v/p/E, and potential L
with reference to point F, if it collides with the bob of a pendulum
A (m = 2, r = 2) it will acquire same v/p/L/E. If the line/rod of the
pendulum rp=k, p will be conserved, but Lp will become L * k/r.
This is a simple example in which the body is considered a point
mass rotating on the circumference, if mass is distributed along
the radius, then we must apply a different formula L=I,
where =v/r and I=mr2. P is not conserved, but KE and L are, in
this way we can work out the outcome of the collision. You can
find a simple example of conservation of L here