De Arte Combinatoria

Frontispiece of the book printed in 1690

The Dissertatio de arte combinatoria ("Dissertation on the Art of Combinations" or "On the Combinatorial Art") is an early work by Gottfried Leibniz published in 1666 in Leipzig.[1] It is an extended version of his first doctoral dissertation,[2] written before the author had seriously undertaken the study of mathematics.[3] The booklet was reissued without Leibniz' consent in 1690, which prompted him to publish a brief explanatory notice in the Acta Eruditorum.[4] During the following years he repeatedly expressed regrets about its being circulated as he considered it immature.[5] Nevertheless it was a very original work and it provided the author the first glimpse of fame among the scholars of his time.

  1. ^ G.W. Leibniz, Dissertatio de arte combinatoria, 1666, Sämtliche Schriften und Briefe (Berlin: Akademie Verlag, 1923), A VI 1, p. 163; Philosophische Schriften (edited by Carl Immanuel Gerhardt), Bd. IV, p. 30;
  2. ^ The first part of the book was his doctoral thesis in Philosophy at Leipzig University. Leibniz defended his thesis in March 1666 (see Richard T. W. Arthur, Leibniz, John Wiley & Sons, 2014, p. x).
  3. ^ Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. Hauptschriften zur Grundlegung der Philosophie. Zur allgemeinen Charakteristik. Philosophische Werke Band 1. p. 32. Translated in German by Artur Buchenau. Published, reviewed and added an introduction and notes by Ernst Cassirer. Hamburg: Felix Meiner, 1966, p. 32.
  4. ^ G.G.L. Ars Combinatoria, Acta Eruditorum, Feb. 1691, pp. 63–64
  5. ^ Leibniz complained to various correspondents, e.g., to Morell (1 October 1697) or to Meier (23 January 1699); see Akademie I.14, p. 548 or I.16, p. 540.