Hypatia

For other uses, see Hypatia (disambiguation).

Hypatia
Bornc. 350–370 AD
Alexandria, Province of Egypt, Eastern Roman Empire
DiedMarch 415 AD (aged 45–65)[1]
Alexandria, Province of Egypt, Eastern Roman Empire
EraAncient philosophy
RegionWestern philosophy
SchoolNeoplatonism
Main interests

Hypatia[a] (born c. 350–370 - March 415 AD)[1][4] was a Neoplatonist philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician who lived in Alexandria, Egypt, then part of the Eastern Roman Empire. She was a prominent thinker in Alexandria where she taught philosophy and astronomy.[5] Although preceded by Pandrosion, another Alexandrian female mathematician,[6] she is the first female mathematician whose life is reasonably well recorded.[7] Hypatia was renowned in her own lifetime as a great teacher and a wise counselor. She wrote a commentary on Diophantus's thirteen-volume Arithmetica, which may survive in part, having been interpolated into Diophantus's original text, and another commentary on Apollonius of Perga's treatise on conic sections, which has not survived. Many modern scholars also believe that Hypatia may have edited the surviving text of Ptolemy's Almagest, based on the title of her father Theon's commentary on Book III of the Almagest.

Hypatia constructed astrolabes and hydrometers, but did not invent either of these, which were both in use long before she was born. She was tolerant toward Christians and taught many Christian students, including Synesius, the future bishop of Ptolemais. Ancient sources record that Hypatia was widely beloved by pagans and Christians alike and that she established great influence with the political elite in Alexandria. Toward the end of her life, Hypatia advised Orestes, the Roman prefect of Alexandria, who was in the midst of a political feud with Cyril, the bishop of Alexandria. Rumors spread accusing her of preventing Orestes from reconciling with Cyril and, in March 415 AD, she was murdered by a mob of Christians led by a lector named Peter.[8][9]

Hypatia's murder shocked the empire and transformed her into a "martyr for philosophy", leading future Neoplatonists such as the historian Damascius (c. 458 – c. 538) to become increasingly fervent in their opposition to Christianity. During the Middle Ages, Hypatia was co-opted as a symbol of Christian virtue and scholars believe she was part of the basis for the legend of Saint Catherine of Alexandria. During the Age of Enlightenment, she became a symbol of opposition to Catholicism. In the nineteenth century, European literature, especially Charles Kingsley's 1853 novel Hypatia, romanticized her as "the last of the Hellenes". In the twentieth century, Hypatia became seen as an icon for women's rights and a precursor to the feminist movement. Since the late twentieth century, some portrayals have associated Hypatia's death with the destruction of the Library of Alexandria, despite the historical fact that the library no longer existed during Hypatia's lifetime.[10]

  1. ^ a b O'Connor, John J.; Robertson, Edmund F., "Hypatia of Alexandria", MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive, University of St Andrews
  2. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Roach, Peter; Setter, Jane; Esling, John (eds.), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary (18th ed.), Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-15255-6
  3. ^ Wells, John C. (2008), Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (3rd ed.), Longman, ISBN 978-1-4058-8118-0
  4. ^ Benedetto, Canio; Isola, Stefano; Russo, Lucio (31 January 2017), "Dating Hypatia's birth : a probabilistic model", Mathematics and Mechanics of Complex Systems, 5 (1): 19–40, doi:10.2140/memocs.2017.5.19, hdl:11581/390549, ISSN 2325-3444
  5. ^ Krebs, Groundbreaking Scientific Experiments, Inventions, and Discoveries; The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy, 2nd edition, Cambridge University Press, 1999: "Greek Neoplatonist philosopher who lived and taught in Alexandria."
  6. ^ O'Connor, John J.; Robertson, Edmund F., "Pandrosion of Alexandria", MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive, University of St Andrews
  7. ^ Deakin 2012.
  8. ^ Edward Jay Watts, (2006), City and School in Late Antique Athens and Alexandria. "Hypatia and pagan philosophical culture in the later fourth century", pp. 197–198. University of California Press
  9. ^ Deakin 1994, p. 147.
  10. ^ Theodore 2016, pp. 182–183.


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