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Greekmathematics
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Greekmathematics,asthetermisusedinthisarticle,isthe
mathematicswritteninGreek,developedfromthe7thcenturyBC
tothe4thcenturyADaroundtheshoresoftheEastern
Mediterranean.Greekmathematicianslivedincitiesspreadover
theentireEasternMediterraneanfromItalytoNorthAfricabut
wereunitedbycultureandlanguage.Greekmathematicsofthe
periodfollowingAlexandertheGreatissometimescalled
Hellenisticmathematics.Theword"mathematics"itselfderives
fromtheancientGreek(mathema),meaning"subjectof
instruction".[1]Thestudyofmathematicsforitsownsakeandthe
useofgeneralizedmathematicaltheoriesandproofsisthekey
differencebetweenGreekmathematicsandthoseofpreceding
civilizations.[2]

Contents
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

AnillustrationofEuclid'sproofofthe
PythagoreanTheorem

OriginsofGreekmathematics
Classicalperiod
Hellenistic
Achievements
Transmissionandthemanuscripttradition
Seealso
Notes
References
Externallinks

OriginsofGreekmathematics
TheoriginofGreekmathematicsisnotwelldocumented.[3]TheearliestadvancedcivilizationsinGreeceand
inEuropeweretheMinoanandlaterMycenaeancivilization,bothofwhichflourishedduringthe2nd
millenniumBC.Whilethesecivilizationspossessedwritingandwerecapableofadvancedengineering,
includingfourstorypalaceswithdrainageandbeehivetombs,theyleftbehindnomathematicaldocuments.
Thoughnodirectevidenceisavailable,itisgenerallythoughtthattheneighboringBabylonianandEgyptian
civilizationshadaninfluenceontheyoungerGreektradition.[3]Between800BCand600BC,Greek
mathematicsgenerallylaggedbehindGreekliterature,andthereisverylittleknownaboutGreekmathematics
fromthisperiodnearlyallofwhichwaspasseddownthroughlaterauthors,beginninginthemid4thcentury
BC.[4]

Classicalperiod
HistorianstraditionallyplacethebeginningofGreekmathematicspropertotheageofThalesofMiletus(ca.
624548BC).LittleisknownaboutthelifeandworkofThales,solittleindeedthathisdateofbirthanddeath
areestimatedfromtheeclipseof585BC,whichprobablyoccurredwhilehewasinhisprime.Despitethis,itis
generallyagreedthatThalesisthefirstofthesevenwisemenofGreece.Thetwoearliestmathematical
theorems,Thales'theoremandIntercepttheoremareattributedtoThales.Theformer,whichstatesthatanangle
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inscribedinasemicircleisarightangle,mayhavebeenlearnedbyThaleswhileinBabylonbuttradition
attributestoThalesademonstrationofthetheorem.ItisforthisreasonthatThalesisoftenhailedasthefather
ofthedeductiveorganizationofmathematicsandasthefirsttruemathematician.Thalesisalsothoughttobe
theearliestknownmaninhistorytowhomspecificmathematicaldiscoverieshavebeenattributed.Althoughit
isnotknownwhetherornotThaleswastheonewhointroducedintomathematicsthelogicalstructurethatisso
ubiquitoustoday,itisknownthatwithintwohundredyearsofThalestheGreekshadintroducedlogical
structureandtheideaofproofintomathematics.
AnotherimportantfigureinthedevelopmentofGreekmathematicsis
PythagorasofSamos(ca.580500BC).LikeThales,Pythagorasalso
traveledtoEgyptandBabylon,thenundertheruleof
Nebuchadnezzar,[4][5]butsettledinCroton,MagnaGraecia.Pythagoras
establishedanordercalledthePythagoreans,whichheldknowledgeand
propertyincommonandhenceallofthediscoveriesbyindividual
Pythagoreanswereattributedtotheorder.Andsinceinantiquityitwas
customarytogiveallcredittothemaster,Pythagorashimselfwasgiven
creditforthediscoveriesmadebyhisorder.Aristotleforonerefusedto
attributeanythingspecificallytoPythagorasasanindividualandonly
discussedtheworkofthePythagoreansasagroup.Oneofthemost
importantcharacteristicsofthePythagoreanorderwasthatitmaintained
thatthepursuitofphilosophicalandmathematicalstudieswasamoral
basisfortheconductoflife.Indeed,thewordsphilosophy(loveof
wisdom)andmathematics(thatwhichislearned)aresaidtohavebeen
coinedbyPythagoras.Fromthisloveofknowledgecamemany
achievements.IthasbeencustomarilysaidthatthePythagoreans
discoveredmostofthematerialinthefirsttwobooksofEuclid's
Elements.
StatueofEuclidintheOxford

DistinguishingtheworkofThalesandPythagorasfromthatoflaterand
UniversityMuseumofNatural
earliermathematiciansisdifficultsincenoneoftheiroriginalworks
History
survive,exceptforpossiblythesurviving"Thalesfragments",whichare
ofdisputedreliability.Howevermanyhistorians,suchasHansJoachim
WaschkiesandCarlBoyer,havearguedthatmuchofthemathematicalknowledgeascribedtoThaleswas
developedlater,particularlytheaspectsthatrelyontheconceptofangles,whiletheuseofgeneralstatements
mayhaveappearedearlier,suchasthosefoundonGreeklegaltextsinscribedonslabs.[6]Thereasonitisnot
clearexactlywhateitherThalesorPythagorasactuallydidisthatalmostnocontemporarydocumentationhas
survived.TheonlyevidencecomesfromtraditionsrecordedinworkssuchasProcluscommentaryonEuclid
writtencenturieslater.Someoftheselaterworks,suchasAristotlescommentaryonthePythagoreans,are
themselvesonlyknownfromafewsurvivingfragments.
Thalesissupposedtohaveusedgeometrytosolveproblemssuchascalculatingtheheightofpyramidsbased
onthelengthofshadows,andthedistanceofshipsfromtheshore.Heisalsocreditedbytraditionwithhaving
madethefirstproofoftwogeometrictheoremsthe"TheoremofThales"andthe"Intercepttheorem"
describedabove.Pythagorasiswidelycreditedwithrecognizingthemathematicalbasisofmusicalharmony
and,accordingtoProclus'commentaryonEuclid,hediscoveredthetheoryofproportionalsandconstructed
regularsolids.Somemodernhistorianshavequestionedwhetherhereallyconstructedallfiveregularsolids,
suggestinginsteadthatitismorereasonabletoassumethatheconstructedjustthreeofthem.Someancient
sourcesattributethediscoveryofthePythagoreantheoremtoPythagoras,whereasothersclaimitwasaproof
forthetheoremthathediscovered.Modernhistoriansbelievethattheprincipleitselfwasknowntothe
Babyloniansandlikelyimportedfromthem.ThePythagoreansregardednumerologyandgeometryas
fundamentaltounderstandingthenatureoftheuniverseandthereforecentraltotheirphilosophicaland
religiousideas.Theyarecreditedwithnumerousmathematicaladvances,suchasthediscoveryofirrational
numbers.HistorianscreditthemwithamajorroleinthedevelopmentofGreekmathematics(particularly

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numbertheoryandgeometry)intoacoherentlogicalsystembasedoncleardefinitionsandproventheorems
thatwasconsideredtobeasubjectworthyofstudyinitsownright,withoutregardtothepracticalapplications
thathadbeentheprimaryconcernoftheEgyptiansandBabylonians.[4][5]

Hellenistic
TheHellenisticperiodbeganinthe4thcenturyBCwithAlexandertheGreat'sconquestoftheeastern
Mediterranean,Egypt,Mesopotamia,theIranianplateau,CentralAsia,andpartsofIndia,leadingtothespread
oftheGreeklanguageandcultureacrosstheseareas.Greekbecamethelanguageofscholarshipthroughoutthe
Hellenisticworld,andGreekmathematicsmergedwithEgyptianandBabylonianmathematicstogiverisetoa
Hellenisticmathematics.
ThemostimportantcentreoflearningduringthisperiodwasAlexandriainEgypt,whichattractedscholars
fromacrosstheHellenisticworld,mostlyGreekandEgyptian,butalsoJewish,Persian,Phoenicianandeven
Indianscholars.[7]
MostofthemathematicaltextswritteninGreekhavebeenfoundinGreece,Egypt,AsiaMinor,Mesopotamia,
andSicily.
Archimedeswasabletouseinfinitesimalsinawaythatissimilarto
modernintegralcalculus.Usingatechniquedependentonaformof
proofbycontradictionhecouldgiveanswerstoproblemstoanarbitrary
degreeofaccuracy,whilespecifyingthelimitswithinwhichtheanswer
lay.Thistechniqueisknownasthemethodofexhaustion,andhe
employedittoapproximatethevalueof(Pi).InTheQuadratureofthe
Parabola,Archimedesprovedthattheareaenclosedbyaparabolaanda
straightlineis4/3timestheareaofatrianglewithequalbaseand
height.Heexpressedthesolutiontotheproblemasaninfinitegeometric
series,whosesumwas4/3.InTheSandReckoner,Archimedessetout
tocalculatethenumberofgrainsofsandthattheuniversecouldcontain.
Indoingso,hechallengedthenotionthatthenumberofgrainsofsand
wastoolargetobecounted,devisinghisowncountingschemebasedon
themyriad,whichdenoted10,000.

TheAntikytheramechanism,an
ancientmechanicalcalculator.

GreekmathematicsandastronomyreachedaratheradvancedstageduringHellenism,representedbyscholars
suchasHipparchus,ApolloniusandPtolemy,tothepointofconstructingsimpleanaloguecomputerssuchas
theAntikytheramechanism.

Achievements
Greekmathematicsconstitutesamajorperiodinthehistoryofmathematics,fundamentalinrespectof
geometryandtheideaofformalproof.Greekmathematicsalsocontributedimportantlytoideasonnumber
theory,mathematicalanalysis,appliedmathematics,and,attimes,approachedclosetointegralcalculus.
Euclid,fl.300BC,collectedthemathematicalknowledgeofhisageintheElements,acanonofgeometryand
elementarynumbertheoryformanycenturies.
ThemostcharacteristicproductofGreekmathematicsmaybethetheoryofconicsections,largelydevelopedin
theHellenisticperiod.Themethodsusedmadenoexplicituseofalgebra,nortrigonometry.
EudoxusofCnidusdevelopedatheoryofrealnumbersstrikinglysimilartothemoderntheorydevelopedby
Dedekind,whoindeedacknowledgedEudoxusasinspiration.[8]

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Transmissionandthemanuscripttradition
AlthoughtheearliestGreeklanguagetextsonmathematicsthathavebeenfoundwerewrittenafterthe
Hellenisticperiod,manyoftheseareconsideredtobecopiesofworkswrittenduringandbeforetheHellenistic
period.[9]Thetwomajorsourcesare
Byzantinecodiceswrittensome500to1500yearsaftertheiroriginals
SyriacorArabictranslationsofGreekworksandLatintranslationsoftheArabicversions.
Nevertheless,despitethelackoforiginalmanuscripts,thedatesofGreekmathematicsaremorecertainthanthe
datesofsurvivingBaylonianorEgyptiansourcesbecausealargenumberofoverlappingchronologiesexist.
Evenso,manydatesareuncertainbutthedoubtisamatterofdecadesratherthancenturies.

Seealso
ChronologyofancientGreekmathematicians
Historyofmathematics
TimetableofGreekmathematicians

Notes
1.Heath.AManualofGreekMathematics.p.5.
2.Boyer,C.B.(1991),AHistoryofMathematics(2nded.),NewYork:Wiley,ISBN0471097632.p.48
3.Hodgkin,Luke(2005)."Greeksandorigins".AHistoryofMathematics:FromMesopotamiatoModernity.Oxford
UniversityPress.ISBN9780198529378.
4.Boyer&Merzbach(1991)pp.4361
5.Heath(2003)pp.36111
6.HansJoachimWaschkies,"Introduction"to"Part1:TheBeginningofGreekMathematics"inClassicsintheHistory
ofGreekMathematics,pp.1112
7.GeorgeG.Joseph(2000).TheCrestofthePeacock,p.78.PrincetonUniversityPress.ISBN0691006598.
8.JJO'ConnorandEFRobertson(April1999)."EudoxusofCnidus".TheMacTutorHistoryofMathematicsarchive.
UniversityofSt.Andrews.Retrieved18April2011.
9.JJO'ConnorandEFRobertson(October1999)."HowdoweknowaboutGreekmathematics?".TheMacTutor
HistoryofMathematicsarchive.UniversityofSt.Andrews.Retrieved18April2011.

References
Boyer,CarlB.(1985),AHistoryofMathematics,PrincetonUniversityPress,ISBN0691023913
Boyer,CarlB.Merzbach,UtaC.(1991),AHistoryofMathematics(2nded.),JohnWiley&Sons,Inc.,ISBN0
471543977
JeanChristianidis,ed.(2004),ClassicsintheHistoryofGreekMathematics,KluwerAcademicPublishers,ISBN1
402000812
Cooke,Roger(1997),TheHistoryofMathematics:ABriefCourse,WileyInterscience,ISBN0471180823
Derbyshire,John(2006),UnknownQuantity:ARealAndImaginaryHistoryofAlgebra,JosephHenryPress,
ISBN030909657X
Stillwell,John(2004),MathematicsanditsHistory(2nded.),SpringerScience+BusinessMediaInc.,ISBN0387
953361
Burton,DavidM.(1997),TheHistoryofMathematics:AnIntroduction(3rded.),TheMcGrawHillCompanies,
Inc.,ISBN0070094659
Heath,ThomasLittle(1981)[Firstpublished1921],AHistoryofGreekMathematics,Doverpublications,ISBN0
486240738
Heath,ThomasLittle(2003)[Firstpublished1931],AManualofGreekMathematics,Doverpublications,ISBN0
486432319
Szabo,Arpad(1978)[Firstpublished1978],TheBeginningsofGreekMathematics,Reidel&AkademiaiKiado,
ISBN9630514168

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Externallinks
VaticanExhibit(http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/vatican.exhibit/exhibit/dmathematics/Mathematics.html)
FamousGreekMathematicians(http://www.famousmathematicians.com/famousgreekmathematicians/)
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Categories: Greekmathematics
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