1802-1860

Hungarian Mathematician

Janos Bolyai was among the founders of non-Euclidean geometry. Non-Euclidean geometry concerns itself with internally consistent mathematical systems in which Euclid's parallel axiom does not apply. The parallel axiom states that only one line can be drawn parallel to a given line through a point not on the line. Non-Euclidean geometry later gained importance as the mathematical foundation of the general theory of relativity.

Bolyai was born in Kolozsvar, Hungary (now Cluj, Romania), on December 15, 1802. His father, Farkas, also called Wolfgang, was a mathematician and a lifelong friend of Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855). By the time he was 13 years old, Janos Bolyai had been taught geometry and calculus by his father. He was also a gifted violinist, and later became an accomplished swordsman. Bolyai continued his education at the Royal Engineering College in Vienna from 1818 through 1822, and served as an officer in the...