Have you ever wondered who the first female mathematician was? Hypatia of Alexandria was a leading scholar of her time and captivated large audiences with her lectures and knowledge. Born in 370 CE, Hypatia was the daughter of the famous mathematician Theon and taught at Alexandria. Hypatia learned from her father and even surpassed him in the subjects of math, astronomy, and philosophy. Hypatia’s views were considered to be part of Neoplatonism, in which Platonic philosophy was studied.
Neoplatonism
Neoplatonism is a philosophical belief of the ancient Greco-Roman period of understanding the world and people’s place in it. Out of these beliefs, intellectual notions, ethics, theories rose. Moreover, neoplatonism encouraged intellectual findings in this time. Followers of neoplatonism believed in “mindful consciousness”, such as geometrical properties, mathematics, and astronomy. Further, the interest in abstract and intellectual concepts help further the understanding of the world. The followers believed that these intellectual ideas held a spiritual force considered as “the One” and striving to understand these views helps people understand the universe more clearly.
Great Scholar
Hypatia was known to be a great teacher and scholar. The subjects that she taught include: Neo-Platonism, mathematics, science, and philosophy. She formed commentaries on Apollonius of Perga’s Conics (geometry) and Diophantus of Alexandria’s Arithmetic (number theory). Moreover, one of her students, Synesius, described one of her lessons were about the design of the astrolabe, which is an astronomical calculator that was later used in the 19th century. Additionally, she is known to be the leading mathematician and astronomer Archbishop Cyril and Roman governor Osteres were in a conflict with one another because Cyril encroached the governor’s territory with Christian monks. Cyril had Christian monks destroy pagan temples. Osteres turned to Hypatia for advice, and she told him to act in fairness. However, Osteres ordered the leader of the Christian monks to be tortured to death. Angry, Cyril blamed Hypatia and accused her of witchcraft. She was murdered by a mob of Christian monks in 415 CE.
Tragic Death of Hypatia
Archbishop Cyril and Roman governor Osteres were in a conflict with one another because Cyril encroached the governor’s territory with Christian monks. Cyril had Christian monks destroy pagan temples. Osteres turned to Hypatia for advice, and she told him to act in fairness. However, Osteres ordered the leader of the Christian monks to be tortured to death. Angry, Cyril blamed Hypatia and accused her of witchcraft. She was murdered by a mob of Christian monks in 415 CE.
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Bibliography
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