Difference between revisions of "Polymath" - New World Encyclopedia

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[[Image:Imhotep.JPG|right|thumb|Statuette of Egyptian polymath [[Imhotep]] in the [[Louvre]]]]
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A '''polymath''' is a person with broad [[knowledge]] or [[learning]]. '''Renaissance Man''' and (less commonly) '''''Homo Universalis''''' are related terms to describe a person who is well educated, or who excels, in a wide variety of subjects or fields. It is based on the [[Humanism|Humanistic]] view of human beings as the center of the universe, unlimited in their capacity. The ideal person, therefore, in this view is one who attains all knowledge and develops all their abilities to the greatest extent, abilities which should encompass the full spectrum of human nature.
  
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The ideal of the polymath Renaissance Man is embodied in the Italian [[Leon Battista Alberti]], an accomplished [[architecture|architect]], [[painting|painter]], [[Classics|classicist]], [[poetry|poet]], [[mathematics|mathematician]], and [[Equestrianism|horseman]], and [[Leonardo da Vinci]], renowned in fields as diverse as [[art]], [[science]], [[invention]], [[music]], and [[writing]].
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Today, the ever continuing growth of knowledge has led to a situation where it is next to impossible for any single person to attain a complete knowledge and the ideal is now often regarded as a person expert in one field but with a sufficiently broad base to network effectively with experts in other fields. Also, studies of [[intelligence]] have revealed that a single, unitary intelligence is not adequate to account for all human intellect. Instead, the idea of multiple intelligences has gained ground, in which there are various types of intelligence, such as linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, and so forth, with different people displaying differing levels of each type. In this view, the ideal is to develop one's own unique talents and abilities to the fullest, without needing to be an expert in all areas. 
  
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[[Image:Leonardo self.jpg|thumb|180px|[[Leonardo da Vinci]] is regarded in many Western cultures as the archetypal "Renaissance Man".]]
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==Definitions==
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A '''polymath''' ([[Greek language|Greek]] ''polymathēs,'' πολυμαθής, "having learned much")<ref name="Online Etymology Dictionary - Polymath">Daniel Harper, [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=polymath&searchmode=none Polymath] ''Online Etymology Dictionary''. Retrieved August 23, 2014.</ref> is defined as a person with [[encyclopedia|encyclopedic]], broad, or varied [[knowledge]] or [[learning]].<ref>[http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=polymath Polymath] ''Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary'' Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/polymath?view=uk Polymath] ''Oxford Concise Dictionary'' Retrieved May 9, 2008. </ref> It especially means that the person's knowledge is not restricted to one subject area. The term is used rarely enough to be included in [[dictionary|dictionaries]] of obscure words.<ref>[http://www.kokogiak.com/logolepsy/ow_p.html#polymath Polymath] ''Luciferous Logolepsy'' Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref>
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A '''polymath''' ([[Greek language|Greek]] ''polymathēs'', πολυμαθής, "having learned much")<ref name="Online Etymology Dictionary - Polymath">the term was first recorded in written English in the early seventeenth century {{Cite web
 
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|url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=polymath&searchmode=none
 
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|title=Online Etymology Dictionary
 
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|accessdate=2006-12-05
 
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|year=2001
 
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|author=Harper, Daniel}}</ref><ref>http://www.infoplease.com/dictionary/polymath</ref> is a person with [[encyclopedic]], broad, or varied [[knowledge]] or [[learning]].<ref>[http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=polymath Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary]</ref><ref>[http://www.wordsmyth.net/live/home.php?script=search&matchent=polymath&matchtype=exact Definition from Wordsmyth]</ref><ref>[http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/polymath?view=uk Definition from Oxford concise dictionary]</ref><ref>[http://www.bartleby.com/61/57/P0425700.html Definition from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language]</ref><ref>See [http://dictionary.reference.com/wordoftheday/archive/1999/11/19.html Reference.com] for examples of actual use</ref>
 
  
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The dictionary definition is consistent with informal use, whereby someone very knowledgeable is described as a polymath when the term is used as a noun, or polymath or polymathic when used as adjectives. It especially means that the person's knowledge is not restricted to one subject area. The term is used rarely enough to be included in [[dictionary|dictionaries]] of obscure words.<ref>[http://www.kokogiak.com/logolepsy/ow_p.html#polymath Luciferous Logolepsy - P<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref><ref>[http://www.tiscali.co.uk/reference/dictionaries/difficultwords/data/d0010198.html Dictionary of Difficult Words - polymath<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref>
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'''Renaissance Man''' (a term first recorded in written English in the early twentieth century)<ref name="Online Etymology Dictionary - Renaissance man">Daniel Harper, [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=Renaissance+man&searchmode=phrase  Renaissance] ''Online Etymology Dictionary''. Retrieved August 23, 2014. </ref> is a related term to describe a person who is well educated, or who excels, in a wide variety of subjects or fields.<ref name=Renaissance>[http://lookwayup.com/lwu.exe/lwu/d?s=f&w=Renaissance%20man Renaissance man (definition)] Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref>  
  
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'''Renaissance Man'''  and (less commonly) '''''Homo Universalis''''' are related terms to describe a person who is well educated, or who excels, in a wide variety of subjects or fields.<ref>[http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/DictionaryResults.aspx?refid=1861738117 Encarta dictionary]</ref><ref>[http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=61359&dict=CALD Cambridge dictionary]</ref> This ideal developed in [[Renaissance Italy]] from the notion expressed by one of its most accomplished representatives, [[Leon Battista Alberti]] (1404–72): that “a man can do all things if he will.” It embodied the basic tenets of Renaissance [[Humanism]], which considered man the centre of the universe, limitless in his capacities for development, and led to the notion that men should try to embrace all knowledge and develop their own capacities as fully as possible. Thus the gifted men of the Renaissance sought to develop skills in all areas of knowledge, in physical development, in social accomplishments, and in the arts.
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This ideal developed in [[Renaissance Italy]] from the notion expressed by one of its most accomplished representatives, [[Leon Battista Alberti]] (1404–1472), that “a man can do all things if he will.” It embodied the basic tenets of Renaissance [[Humanism]], which considered man the center of the universe, limitless in his capacities for development, and led to the notion that men should try to embrace all knowledge and develop their own capacities as fully as possible. Thus the gifted men of the Renaissance sought to develop skills in all areas of knowledge, in physical development, in social accomplishments, and in the arts.
  
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==Related terms==
 
 
[[Image:Hildegard.jpg|thumb|right|500px|[[Hildegard of Bingen]], a medieval polymath, shown dictating to her scribe in an illumination from ''[[Liber Scivias]]'']]
 
[[Image:Hildegard.jpg|thumb|right|500px|[[Hildegard of Bingen]], a medieval polymath, shown dictating to her scribe in an illumination from ''[[Liber Scivias]]'']]
  
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A different term for the secondary meaning of polymath is '''Renaissance Man''' (a term first recorded in written English in the early twentieth century).<ref name="Online Etymology Dictionary - Renaissance man">{{Cite web|url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=Renaissance+man&searchmode=phrase|title=Online Etymology Dictionary|accessdate=2006-12-05|year=2001|author=Harper, Daniel}}</ref> Other similar terms also in use are '''Homo universalis''' and '''[[:it:Uomo universale|Uomo Universale]]''', which in [[Latin language|Latin]] and [[Italian language|Italian]], respectively, translate as "universal person" or "universal man." These expressions derived from the ideal in Renaissance Humanism that it was possible to acquire a universal learning<ref>[http://lookwayup.com/lwu.exe/lwu/d?s=f&w=Renaissance%20man Renaissance man (definition)<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref> in order to develop one's potential, (covering both the arts and the sciences<ref>[http://www.bartleby.com/61/95/R0149500.html Renaissance man. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref> and without necessarily restricting this learning
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Other similar terms are '''Homo universalis''' and '''Uomo Universale''', which in [[Latin language|Latin]] and [[Italian language|Italian]], respectively, translate as "universal person" or "universal man." These expressions derived from the ideal in Renaissance Humanism that it was possible to acquire a universal learning<ref name=Renaissance/> in order to develop one's potential, (covering both the arts and the sciences<ref>[http://www.bartleby.com/61/95/R0149500.html Renaissance man] ''The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition.'' 2000. Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref> and without necessarily restricting this learning to the academic fields). Further, the scope of learning was much narrower so gaining a command of the known accumulated knowledge was more feasible than today.  
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to the academic fields). Further, the scope of learning was much narrower so gaining a command of the known accumulated knowledge was more feasible than today. When someone is called a [[Renaissance]] Man today, it is meant that he does not just have broad interests or a superficial knowledge of several fields, but rather that his knowledge is profound, and often that he also has proficiency or accomplishments<ref>[http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/DictionaryResults.aspx?refid=1861700404 Encarta dictionary]</ref><ref>[http://www.infoplease.com/dictionary/Renaissance+man Infoplease.com]</ref><ref>[http://www.ultralingua.com/onlinedictionary/?service=ee&text=Renaissance+man Ultralingua - English to German, Italian, Spanish, and French Online Dictionary<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref><ref>[http://lookwayup.com/lwu.exe/lwu/d?s=f&w=Renaissance%20man Renaissance man (definition)<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref> in (at least some of) these fields, and in some cases even at a level comparable to the proficiency or the accomplishments of an expert.<ref>[http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=Renaissance+man va=Renaissance man - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref> The related term
 
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'''Generalist'''<ref>[http://www.ultralingua.com/onlinedictionary/?service=ee&text=Renaissance+man Ultralingua - English to German, Italian, Spanish, and French Online Dictionary<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref> is used to contrast this general approach to knowledge to that of the specialist. (The expression Renaissance man today commonly implies only intellectual or scholastic proficiency and knowledge and not necessarily the more universal sense of "learning" implied by the Renaissance Humanism). It is important to note, however, that some dictionaries use the term Renaissance man as roughly synonym of polymath in the first meaning, to describe someone versatile with many interests or talents,<ref>[http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/orexxnaissanceman?view=uk Oxford concise dictionary]</ref> while others recognize a meaning which is restricted to the Renaissance era and more closely related to the Renaissance ideals.<ref>[http://www.infoplease.com/dictionary/Renaissance+man Infoplease.com]</ref>
 
  
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The term '''Universal Genius''' is also used, taking [[Leonardo da Vinci]] as a prime example again. The term seems to be used especially when a Renaissance man has made historical or lasting contributions in at least one of the fields in which he was actively involved and when he had a universality of approach. Despite the existence of this term, a polymath may not necessarily be classed as a [[genius]]; and certainly a genius may not display the breadth of knowledge to qualify as a polymath. [[Albert Einstein]] and [[Marie Curie]] are examples of people widely viewed as geniuses, but who are not generally considered as polymaths.
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When someone is called a Renaissance Man today, it is meant that he does not just have broad interests or a superficial knowledge of several fields, but rather that his knowledge is profound, and often that he also has proficiency or accomplishments<ref>[http://lookwayup.com/lwu.exe/lwu/d?s=f&w=Renaissance%20man Renaissance man (definition)] Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref> in (at least some of) these fields, and in some cases even at a level comparable to the proficiency or the accomplishments of an expert.<ref>[http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=Renaissance+man Renaissance man] ''Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary'' Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref> The related term '''Generalist'''<ref name=Renaissance/> is often used to contrast this general approach to knowledge to that of the specialist.  
  
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===Renaissance ideal===
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The term '''Universal Genius''' is also used, taking [[Leonardo da Vinci]] as a prime example, especially when a Renaissance man has made historical or lasting contributions in at least one of the fields in which he was actively involved and when he had a universality of approach. Despite the existence of this term, a polymath may not necessarily be classed as a [[genius]]; and certainly a genius may not display the breadth of knowledge to qualify as a polymath. [[Albert Einstein]] and [[Marie Curie]] are examples of people widely viewed as geniuses, but who are not generally considered as polymaths.
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Many notable polymaths lived during the [[Renaissance]] period,  
 
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a cultural movement that spanned roughly the fourteenth through the seventeenth century, beginning in Italy in the late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. They had a rounded approach to [[education]] which was typical of the ideals of the [[Humanism|humanists]] of the time. A [[gentleman]] or [[courtier]] of that era was expected to speak several [[language]]s, play a [[musical instrument]], write [[poetry]], and so on, thus fulfilling the Renaissance [[Ideal (ethics)|ideal]]. During the Renaissance, [[Baldassare Castiglione]], in his ''[[The Book of the Courtier]]'', wrote a guide to being a polymath.  
 
  
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The Renaissance Ideal differed slightly from the "Polymath" in that it involved more than just intellectual advancement. Historically (roughly 1450–1600) it represented a person who endeavored to "develop his capacities as fully as possible" (''[[Encyclopædia Britannica|Britannica]]'', "Renaissance Man") both mentally and physically. Being an accomplished athlete was considered integral and not separate from education and learning of the highest order. Example: [[Leon Battista Alberti]], who was an architect, painter, poet, scientist, mathematician, and also a skilled horseman.
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According to the [[Oxford English Dictionary]], the words "polymath" and '''polyhistor''' mean practically the same; "the classical Latin word polyhistor was used exclusively, and the Greek word frequently, of [[Alexander Polyhistor]]," but polymathist appeared later, and then polymath. Thus today, regardless of any differentiation they may have had when originally coined, they are often taken to mean the same thing.
  
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===Some ''Renaissance Men''===
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In Britain, phrases such as '''polymath sportsman''', '''sporting polymath''', or simply "polymath" are occasionally used in a restricted sense to refer to [[athlete]]s that have performed at a high level in several very different [[sport]]s.
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<!-- Please use this article's talk page to suggest names of people who should be included on this page; do not add them to this article page unless you can also provide a verifiable source citation. Remember that a Wikipedia link is not an adequate citation, because Wikipedia is not itself considered to meet [[WP:RS|reliable source]] guidelines.
 
  
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Most of the historical figures that are regarded as polymaths would most likely not be as regarded today based on the level of knowledge that they possessed. This is especially in regards to the quantity and levels of knowledge as they existed at the time. Much of their knowledge was basic and purely theoretical. For example, a gentleman educated in various fields such as math, history, literature, art, and science during the 18th or 19th may be only the equivalent of an average modern person with a secondary school education. In ancient times, an expert on medicine may be the equivalent of knowing basic modern first aid. In contrast to modern times, knowledge was also condensed and comprehensive information on a particular field could often be found in single volumes or texts.
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==Renaissance Ideal Today==
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The expression "Renaissance man" today commonly implies only intellectual or scholastic proficiency and knowledge and not necessarily the more universal sense of "learning" implied by the Renaissance Humanism. It is important to note, however, that some dictionaries use the term Renaissance man as roughly synonym of "polymath" in the first meaning, to describe someone versatile with many interests or talents,<ref>[http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/orexxnaissanceman?view=uk Renaissance man] ''Oxford Concise Dictionary'' Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref> while others recognize a meaning which is restricted to the Renaissance era and more closely related to the Renaissance ideals.
  
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(see "Unsourced list of polymaths" in article discussion for more details)
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During the Renaissance, the ideal of [[Renaissance humanism]] included the acquisition of almost all available important knowledge. At that time, several universal geniuses seem to have come close to that ideal, with actual achievements in multiple fields. With the passage of time however, "universal learning" has begun to appear ever more self-contradictory. For example, a famous dispute between "[[Jacob Burckhardt]] (whose ''Die Kultur der Renaissance in Italien'' of 1860 established Alberti as the prototype of the Renaissance Man) and [[Julius von Schlosser]] (whose ''Die Kunstliteratur'' of 1924 expresses discontent with Burckhardt's assessments on several counts)" deals with the issue of whether Alberti was indeed a dilettante or an actual Universal Man; while an 1863 article about rhetoric said, for instance: "an universal genius is not likely to attain to distinction and to eminence in any thing. To achieve her best results, and to produce her most matured fruit, Genius must bend all her energies in one direction; strive for one object; keep her brain and hand upon one desired purpose and aim."<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?vid=OCLC01768790&id=lNkRAAAAIAAJ&pg=PP12&dq=%22universal+genius+is%22#PPA262,M1 Universalist Quarterly and General Review Volume XX] (Boston, MA: Thomkins & Co., 1863) Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref>
  
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This list should contain '''only''' people whose names are accompanied by a citation, from a source meeting Wikipedia's reliable source guidelines, which uses the word "polymath" to describe them. It should not contain people simply because they have achievements in many fields and Wikipedia editors judge the list of fields to justify their being described as polymaths. —>
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Since it is considered extremely difficult to genuinely acquire an encyclopaedic knowledge, and even more to be proficient in several fields at the level of an expert, not to mention to achieve excellence or recognition in multiple fields, the word polymath may also be used, often [[irony|ironically]], with a potentially negative connotation as well. Under this connotation, by sacrificing depth for breadth, the polymath becomes a "jack of all trades, master of none." For many specialists, in the context of today's [[hyperspecialization]], the ideal of a Renaissance man is judged to be an [[anachronism]], since it is not uncommon that a specialist can barely dominate the accumulated knowledge of more than just one restricted subfield in his whole life. Many fields of interest take years of single-minded devotion to achieve expertise, often requiring starting at an early age.  
  
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The following list provides examples of notable polymaths (in the secondary meaning only, that is, Renaissance men). Caution is necessary when interpreting the word polymath (in the second meaning or any of its synonyms) in a source, since there's always ambiguity of what the word denotes. Also, when a list of subjects in relation to the polymath is given, such lists often seem to imply that the notable polymath was reputable in all fields, but the most common case is that the polymath made his reputation in one or two main fields where he had widely recognized achievements, and that he was merely proficient or actively involved in other fields, but, once again, not necessarily with achievements comparable to those of renowned experts of his time in these fields. The list does not attempt to be comprehensive or authoritative in any way. The list also includes the ''Hakeem'' of the [[Islamic Golden Age]] (also known as the "Islamic Renaissance"), who are considered equivalent to the Renaissance Men of the European Renaissance era.
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In addition, today, expertise is often associated with documents, certifications, diplomas, and degrees and a person who has an abundance of these is often perceived as having more education than practical "working" experience. However, true expertise may require practical familiarity that may be inaccessible to someone who has little or no actual experience in the field or who was not born and raised in the relevant culture. In many such cases, it is realistically possible to achieve only knowledge of [[theory]] if not practical experience. For example, on a [[safari]], a jungle native will be a more effective guide than an [[United States|American]] scientist who may be educated in the theories of jungle survival but did not grow up acquiring his knowledge the hard way.
  
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The following people represent prime examples of "Renaissance Men" and "universal geniuses," so to say "polymaths" in the strictest interpretation of the '''secondary''' meaning of the word.
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Today it is generally considered that the specialist's understanding of knowledge is too narrow and that a synthetic comprehension of different fields is unavailable to him. What is much more common today than the universal approach to knowledge from a single polymath is the multidisciplinary approach to knowledge, which derives from several experts in different fields working together to pool their knowledge and abilities.
  
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*'''[[Averroes|Ibn Rushd]] (Averroes)''' (1126–1198), an [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]] [[Arab]] [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], [[Islamic medicine|doctor, physician]], [[Sharia|jurist, lawyer]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Islamic mathematics|mathematician]], and [[theology|theologan]]; "Ibn-Rushd, a polymath also known as Averroes";<ref>[http://go.webassistant.com/wa/cont_pub_view_item.lhtml?-Token.Id=23316&-Token.cId=100427&-Nothing Top 100 Events of the Millennium], ''[[Life (magazine)|Life magazine]]''.</ref> "Doctor, Philosopher, Renaissance Man."<ref>Caroline Stone, "Doctor, Philosopher, Renaissance Man," ''[[Saudi Aramco World]]'', May-June 2003, p. 8–15.</ref>
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==Examples==
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Most of the historical figures considered polymaths would most likely not be so regarded today based on the level of knowledge that they possessed. Much of their knowledge was basic and purely theoretical. For example, a gentleman educated in various fields such as math, history, literature, art, and science during the eighteenth or nineteenth centuries may be only the equivalent of an average modern person with a secondary school education. In ancient times, an expert on medicine may be the equivalent of knowing basic modern first aid. In contrast to modern times, knowledge was also condensed and comprehensive information on a particular field could often be found in single volumes or texts.  
  
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*'''[[Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī]]''' (973–1048), a [[Persian people|Persian]] [[Islamic science|scientist, physicist]], [[Anthropology|anthropologist]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Islamic astrology|astrologer]], [[encyclopedist]], [[geodesy|geodesist]], [[geographer]], [[geology|geologist]], [[Historiography of early Islam|historian]], [[Islamic mathematics|mathematician]], [[Natural history|natural historian]], [[Islamic medicine|pharmacist, physician]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], [[Ulema|scholar]], [[teacher]], [[Ash'ari]] [[Kalam|theologian]], and traveller; "al-Biruni was a polymath and traveler (to [[History of India|India]]), making contributions in mathematics, geography and geology, natural history, calendars and astronomy";<ref>Paul Murdin (2000). "al-Biruni, Abu Raihan (973–1048)," ''Encyclopedia of Astronomy and Astrophysics'', Institute of Physics Publishing, Bristol.</ref> "al-Biruni, a scholar in many disciplines - from [[linguistics]] to [[mineralogy]] - and perhaps medieval [[Uzbekistan]]'s most universal genius."<ref>Mr Koïchiro Matsuura.
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Caution is necessary when interpreting the word "polymath" since there is always ambiguity regarding what the word denotes. Nevertheless, there are a number of scholars who are recognized as polymaths and/or Renaissance men; some examples follow.
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[http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001206/120699E.pdf United Nations: Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization], [[UNESCO]].</ref>
 
  
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*'''[[Nicolaus Copernicus]]''' (1473–1543); among the great polymaths of the Renaissance, Copernicus was a mathematician, astronomer, physician, classical scholar, translator, Catholic cleric, jurist, governor, military leader, diplomat and economist. Amid his extensive responsibilities, astronomy figured as little more than an avocation—yet it was in that field that he made his mark upon the world.
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===Recognized polymaths===
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[[Image:Leon Battista Alberti.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Late statue of Leon Battista Alberti.  Courtyard of the Uffizi Gallery, [[Florence]].]]
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The following people have been described as "polymaths" by several sources—fulfilling the primary definition of the term—although there may not be expert consensus that each is a prime example in the secondary meaning, as "renaissance men" and "universal geniuses."
  
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*'''[[Al-Farabi]] (Alfarabi)''' (870–950/951), a [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]]<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9033714/al-Farabi Encyclopædia Britannica Article on al-Farabi]</ref> or [[Persian people|Persian]]<ref>[http://users.ox.ac.uk/~worc0337/authors/al-farabi.html Philosophers: al-Fārābi]</ref> [[Muslim]] who was known as ''The second teacher'' because he had great influence on science and philosophy for several centuries, and was widely regarded to be second only to [[Aristotle]] in knowledge in his time. Farabi made notable contributions to the fields of [[mathematics]], [[philosophy]], [[medicine]] and [[music]]. As a [[philosopher]] and [[Neo-Platonist]], he wrote rich commentary on Aristotle's work. He is also credited for categorizing [[logic]] into two separate groups, the first being "idea" and the second being "[[logical argument|proof]]." Farabi wrote books on [[sociology]] and a notable book on music titled ''[[Kitab al-Musiqa]]'' (The Book of Music). He played and invented a varied number of [[musical instrument]]s and his pure [[Arabian tone system]] is still used in [[Arabic music]].<ref>[http://www.islamonline.net/english/Science/2002/01/article20.shtml Abu Al-Nasr Al-Farabi: The Second Teacher]</ref>
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*'''[[Abhinavagupta]]''' (fl. 975–1025), an [[History of India|Indian]] [[Philosophy|philosopher]], [[literary criticism|literary critic]], [[Shaivism|Shaivite]], [[aesthetics|aesthetist]], [[music]ian, [[poetry|poet]], [[dramatist]], [[dance]]r, [[exegesis|exegetical]] [[theology|theologian]], and [[logic]]ian; "the great Kashmiri philosopher and polymath, Abhinavagupta."<ref>Hiram Woodward, (2004). Review of ''Indian esoteric Buddhism: A social history of the Tantric movement'' by Ronald M. Davidson, ''Journal of Southeast Asian Studies'' 35: 329–354</ref>
  
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*'''[[Abbas Ibn Firnas]] (Armen Firman)''' (810–887), an [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]] [[Berber people|Berber]] [[Inventions in the Muslim world|aviator, inventor, technologist]], [[Alchemy (Islam)|chemist]], [[humanitarian]], [[Islamic music|musician]], [[Islamic medicine|physician]] and [[Arabic poetry|poet]]; "Ibn Firnas was a polymath: a physician, a rather bad poet, the first to make [[glass]] from [[Silicon dioxide|stones]] ([[Fused quartz|quartz]]?), a student of music, and inventor of some sort of [[metronome]]";<ref>[[Lynn Townsend White, Jr.]] (Spring, 1961). "Eilmer of Malmesbury, an Eleventh Century Aviator: A Case Study of Technological Innovation, Its Context and Tradition," ''Technology and Culture'' '''2''' (2), p. 97-111 [100-101].</ref> "had he lived in the [[Florence]] of the [[Medici]], [Abbas ibn Firnas] would have been a “Renaissance man”."<ref>Paul Lunde, [http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200407/science.in.al-andalus-.compilation..htm Science in Al-Andalus], ''[[Saudi Aramco World]]'', July 2004, pp. 20-27.</ref>
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*'''[[Akbar the Great]]''' (1542-1605), an Indian [[Mughal emperor]], "polymath," [[architecture|architect]], [[artisan]], [[art]]ist, [[armor]]er, [[blacksmith]], [[carpentry|carpenter]], [[construction worker]], [[engineering|engineer]], military general, inventor, [[lace]]maker, [[technology|technologist]], theologian, and writer.<ref name=Habib>Irfan Habib, "Akbar and Technology," ''Social Scientist'' 20 (9-10)(1992) : 3-15 [3-4].</ref>
  
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*'''[[Galileo Galilei]]''' (1564–1642), "Italian scientist, physicist, and philosopher. Galileo was a true Renaissance man, excelling at many different endeavors, including lute playing and painting."<ref>[[Eric W. Weisstein]], [http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Galileo.html Galileo Galilei (1564–1642)]</ref>
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*'''[[Leone Battista Alberti]]''' (1404–1472), "often considered the archetype of the Renaissance polymath."<ref>Peter Brand and Lino Pertile. 1999. ''The Cambridge History of Italian Literature.'' (Cambridge University Press.) "Leon Battista Alberti), more versatile than Bruni, is often considered the archetype of the Renaissance polymath." [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0521666228&id=3uq0bObScHMC&pg=PA138&lpg=PA138&sig=nwB1Gggq981himLrVnBBRuaqScQ p. 138] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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*'''[[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe]]''' (1749–1832) "Germany's greatest man of letters&mdash;poet, critic, playwright, and novelist&mdash;and the last true polymath to walk the earth"<ref>{{cite book|title=Middlemarch|first=George|last=Eliot|origyear=1871|year=2004|publisher=Broadview Press|id=ISBN |editor=Gregory Maertz (ed.)}} Note by editor of 2004 edition, Gregory Maertz, [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN1551112337&id=4MopnRJ-HmMC&pg=PA710&lpg=PA710&sig=4nAO63zmLS9Ua-x0mevpZA7kSIY p. 710]</ref> "Goethe comes as close to deserving the title of a universal genius as any man who has ever lived".<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0451528417&id=qoNDakvwmWsC&pg=PA299&lpg=PA299&dq=Goethe+%22universal+genius%22&sig=rHKvBf4tXHq5oxQT3JR2j0U7viY Google books]</ref> "He was essentially the last great European Renaissance man."<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN1740594711&id=38pxvHefrL0C&pg=PA213&lpg=PA213&dq=%22renaissance+man%22+Goethe&sig=O6eNSbYLxqLaBiQ4jnHfDJwhNU0 Google books]</ref> His gifts included incalculable contributions to the areas of German literature and the natural sciences. He is credited with discovery of a bone in the human jaw, and proposed a theory of colors. He has a mineral named in his honor, [[goethite]]. He molded the aesthetic properties of the Alps to poetry, thus, changing the local belief from "perfectly hideous" and an "unavoidable misery," to grandeur of the finest most brilliant creation.<br/>
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*'''[[Al-Kindi]] (Alkindus)''' (801–873), an [[Arab]] [[astronomy|astronomer]], [[geography|geographer]], [[mathematics|mathematician]], [[Meteorology|meteorologist]], musician, philosopher, [[Islamic medicine|physician]], physicist, scientist, and politician; "he (Al-Kindî) was an omnivorous polymath, studying everything, writing 265 treatises about everything—arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, meteorology, geography, physics, politics, music, medicine, philosophy."<ref>Will Durant, Innovations in Islamic Sciences, ''Foundation for Science Technology and Civilisation''.</ref>
  
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*'''[[Ibn al-Haytham]] (Alhacen)''' (965–1039), an [[Iraq]]i [[Arab]] [[Islamic science|scientist, physicist]], [[Islamic medicine|anatomist, physician, psychologist]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Inventions in the Muslim world|engineer]], [[Islamic mathematics|mathematician]], [[Ophthalmology in medieval Islam|ophthalmologist]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], and [[Ash'ari]] [[Kalam|theologian]]; "a devout, brilliant polymath";<ref>[http://www.ibnalhaytham.net/custom.em?pid=571860 Review of ''Ibn al-Haytham: First Scientist''], [[Kirkus Reviews]], December 1, 2006.</ref> "a great man and a universal genius, long neglected even by his own people";<ref>Sami Hamarneh (March 1972). Review of Hakim Mohammed Said, ''Ibn al-Haitham'', ''Isis'' '''63''' (1), p. 118–119.</ref> "Ibn al-Haytham provides us with the historical personage of a versatile universal genius."<ref>Laurence Bettany (1995). "Ibn al-Haytham: an answer to multicultural science teaching?," ''Physics Education'' '''30''', p. 247–252.</ref>
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*'''[[Aristotle]]''' (384–322 B.C.E.) <ref>"He was a remarkable polymath. He made major contributions to logic, metaphysics, the natural sciences (above all [[biology]]), [[psychology]], [[ethics]], literary criticism.."); A. W. Moore. ''The Infinite.''  (Routledge. 2001) [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415252857&id=Vnm6X_g0pc8C&pg=PA34&lpg=PA34&sig=v7uy0RAX2SGKvXG8R5jsG8suw98 p. 34] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> "Aristotle was an extraordinary polymath…"<ref>Derek Heater. 2004. ''A Brief History Of Citizenship.'' (New York University Press), "Aristotle was an extraordinary polymath, although only two of his great range of works, which were probably in origin lectures, interest us here." [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0814736726&id=c-falFSTRQwC&pg=PA16&lpg=PA16&sig=_nR6soRWgfnkVgha_VDwD8H0OAw p. 16] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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*'''[[Thomas Jefferson]]''' (1743-1826). Jefferson, the third President of the United States, was "the walking, talking embodiment of the Enlightenment, a polymath whose list of achievements is as long as it is incredibly varied."<ref>{{cite book|author=Cormac O'Brien|title=Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents: What Your Teachers Never Told You|id=ISBN 1931686572|year=2004|publisher=Quirk Books}}, p. 15</ref>. At a dinner honoring Nobel laureates, [[John F. Kennedy]] famously said "I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together in the White House&mdash;with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone."<ref>{{cite book|title=Popular Images of American Presidents|author=William C. Spragens|year=1988|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|id=ISBN 031322899X}}, p. 27</ref>
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*'''[[Samuel Taylor Coleridge]]''' (1772–1834), poet, critic, and philosopher; "Coleridge was unquestionably a polymath, with a universal knowledge unequalled by any thinker of his day."<ref>David Newsome. 1999. ''The Victorian World Picture.'' (Cambridge University Press) [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0813527589&id=mkivzSGbGLEC&pg=PA259&lpg=PA259&sig=MCas4U7qxxzIQRBAPDdrAxmpzSk p. 259] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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*'''[[Ibn Khaldun]]''' (1332–1406), an [[Early Muslim sociology|Arab social scientist, sociologist]], [[Historiography of early Islam|historian, historiographer, philosopher of history]], [[Demography|demographer]], [[Islamic economics in the world|economist]], [[Arabic grammar|linguist]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], [[Political philosophy|political theorist]], [[List of military theorists|military theorist]], [[Ulema|Islamic scholar]], [[Ash'ari]] [[Kalam|theologian]], [[diplomat]] and [[statesman]]; "a still-influential polymath";<ref>Liat Radcliffe, ''[[Newsweek]]'' ([[cf.]] [http://www.complete-review.com/reviews/maroc/himmich1.htm The Polymath by Bensalem Himmich], The Complete Review).</ref> "in any epoch ibn Khaldun (1332-1406) would deserve the accolade Renaissance man, a person of many talents and diverse interests."<ref>Marvin E. Gettleman and Stuart Schaar (2003), ''The Middle East and Islamic World Reader'', p. 54, [[Grove Press]], ISBN 0802139361.</ref>
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*'''[[Benjamin Franklin]]''' (1706–1790), a leading author, political theorist, politician, printer, scientist, inventor, civic activist, and diplomat. "The ultimate creole intellectual…. A true polymath of the Enlightenment style, he distinguished himself on both sides of the Atlantic by researches in natural sciences as well as politics and literature."<ref>Myra Jehlen and Michael Warner. 1997. ''The English Literatures of America.'' (Routledge) [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN 0415908736&id=iveyYA_jI_sC&pg=PA667&lpg=PA667&sig=IeaSfLkF5kYFdkv3j9Fm7dRiAXA p. 667] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>  
  
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*'''[[Gottfried Leibniz]]''' (1646–1716); "Leibniz was a polymath who made significant contributions in many areas of physics, logic, history, librarianship, and of course philosophy and theology, while also working on ideal languages, mechanical clocks, mining machinery..."<ref>{{cite book|title=Central Works of Philosophy, Volume 2: Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century|first=John|last=Shand|year=2006|id=ISBN|publisher=McGill-Queen's Press}}, ch. 3, "G. W. Leibnitz: Monadology," by Douglas Burnham; [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0773530185&id=uslzupLyFt4C&pg=PA61&lpg=PA61&sig=eu8T4DjvDVAcggW68Qv6Oc_6fuU p. 61]</ref> "A universal genius if ever there was one, and an inexhaustible source of original and fertile ideas, Leibniz was all the more interested in logic because it ..."<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN3540225250&id=IL-SI67hjI4C&pg=PA301&lpg=PA301&dq=Leibniz+%22universal+genius%22&sig=SlqKmspxWH6XLbuiy014aCYcCuY Google books]</ref> "Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz was maybe the last Universal Genius incessantly active in the fields of theology, philosophy, mathematics, physics, ...."<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN3540225250&id=IL-SI67hjI4C&pg=PA301&lpg=PA301&dq=Leibniz+%22universal+genius%22&sig=SlqKmspxWH6XLbuiy014aCYcCuY Google books]</ref> "Leibniz was perhaps the last great Renaissance man who in Bacon's words took all knowledge to be his province."<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415283388&id=Lf_14LCC8mcC&pg=PA14&lpg=PA14&dq=%22renaissance+man%22+Leibniz&sig=0dYnbMJ0H6tpKdIVvx6WjakhfZ8 Google books]</ref>
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*'''[[Geber]] (Jabir ibn Hayyan)''' (721–815), an Arab Muslim chemist, alchemist, astrologer, astronomer, engineer, pharmacist, physician, philosopher, and physicist; "Jābir was a polymath who wrote 300 books on philosophy, 1,300 books on mechanical devices and military machinery, and hundreds of books on alchemy."<ref>[http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/arabic/bioJ.html Bio-Bibliographies], ''United States National Library of Medicine''. Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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*'''[[Isaac Newton]]''' (1643–1727) was an English [[physicist]], [[mathematician]], [[astronomer]], [[theologian]], [[natural philosopher]] and [[Alchemy|alchemist]]. His treatise ''[[Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica]]'', published in 1687, described [[law of universal gravitation|universal gravitation]] and the three [[Newton's laws of motion|laws of motion]], laying the groundwork for [[classical mechanics]], which dominated the scientific view of the physical universe for the next three centuries and is the basis for modern engineering. In a 2005 poll of the [[Royal Society]] of who had the greatest effect on the [[history of science]], Newton was deemed more influential than [[Albert Einstein]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Newton beats Einstein in polls of scientists and the public |work=The Royal Society |url=http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk/news.asp?id=3880 |accessdate=2006-10-25}}</ref> "When we see Newton as a late Renaissance man, his particular addiction to classical geometry as ancient wisdom and the most reliable way of unveiling the secrets of nature, seems natural."<ref>Alan Cook (2000), Review of Niccolo Guicciardini, ''Reading the Principia; The Debate on Newton's Mathematical Methods for Natural Philosophy from 1687 to 1736'', ''Notes and Records of the Royal Society of London'' '''54''' (1), p. 109–113.</ref>
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*'''[[Edward Heron-Allen]]''' (1861–1943) Not only was Heron-Allen a lawyer by trade, he also wrote, lectured on and created violins, was an expert on the art of [[chiromancy]] or palmistry, having read palms and analyzed the handwriting of luminaries of the period. He wrote on musical, literary and scientific subjects ranging from foraminifera, marine zoology, meteorology, as a [[Persian language|Persian]] scholar translated Classics such as the ''Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam'' and ''The Lament of Baba Tahir,'' also wrote on local geographic history, archeology, Buddhist philosophy, the cultivation, gourmet appreciation of and culture of the asparagus, as well as a number of novels and short stories of science fiction and horror written under his pseudonymn of "Christopher Blayre." "Heron-Allen is better described as a polymath…"<ref>R.B. Russell, Tartarus Press.</ref>  
  
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*'''[[Abū Alī ibn Sīnā]] (Avicenna)''' (980–1037), a [[Persian people|Persian]] [[Islamic medicine|physician, pharmacologist]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher, metaphysician]], [[Aromatherapy|aromatherapist]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Alchemy (Islam)|chemist]], [[Hanafi]] [[Fiqh|jurist]] and [[Kalam|theologian]], [[Islamic science|physicist, scientist]], and [[Universalism|universalist]]; "The Persian polymath-physician Avicenna";<ref>Richard Covington, "Rediscovering Arabic Science," ''[[Saudi Aramco World]]'', May/June 2007.</ref> "Avicenna (973–1037) was a sort of universal genius, known first as a physician. To his works on medicine he afterward added religious tracts, [[Islamic poetry|poems]], works on philosophy, on [[Logic in Islamic philosophy|logic]], as [[physics]], on [[Islamic mathematics|mathematics]], and on astronomy. He was also a [[statesman]] and a [[soldier]]."<ref>Charles F. Horne (1917), ed., ''The Sacred Books and Early Literature of the East Vol. VI: Medieval Arabia'', pages 90–91. Parke, Austin, & Lipscomb, New York. ([[cf.]] [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/1020Avicenna-Medicine.html Ibn Sina (Avicenna) (973–1037): On Medicine, c. 1020 C.E.], Medieval Sourcebook.)</ref>
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*'''[[Imhotep]]''' (fl. 2650–2611 B.C.E.), [[Ancient Egypt|Egyptian]] chancellor, physician, and architect; "Imhotep, circa 2650 B.C.E.. (who was revered as being at least semi-divine until the [[Late Period of ancient Egypt|Late Period]], although some of this reverence may be due to his status as physician and all-round polymath)."<ref>[http://www.ancientworlds.net/aw/Article/436803 The Egyptian Building Mania], ''Acta Divrna'' Vol. III, IV (January, 2004). Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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*'''[[Nasīr al-Dīn al-Tūsī]] (Tusi)''' (1201–1274), a [[Persian people|Persian]] [[Muslim]], was one of the greatest scientists, philosophers, mathematicians, astronomers, theologians and physicians of the thirteenth century;<ref>[http://www.islamonline.com/news/newsfull.php?newid=996 Nasir Al-Din Al-Tusi]</ref><ref name=Alavi/> "the ensemble of Tusi’s writings amounts to approximately 165 titles on a wide variety of subjects ([[Islamic astronomy|astronomy]], [[ethics]], [[Historiography of early Islam|history]], [[Fiqh|jurisprudence]], [[Logic in Islamic philosophy|logic]], [[Islamic mathematics|mathematics]], [[Islamic medicine|medicine]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosophy]], [[Kalam|theology]], [[Islamic poetry|poetry]] and the [[Islamic science|popular sciences]])."<ref>S. J. Badakhchani, [http://www.iep.utm.edu/t/tusi.htm Nasir al-Din Tusi (1201–1274)], ''[[Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy]]''.</ref>
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*'''[[Mikhail Lomonosov]]''' (1711–1765), "Lomonosov was a true polymath&mdash;physicist, chemist, natural scientist, poet and linguist…."<ref>Richard J. Chorley and Robert P Beckinsale. ''The History of the Study of Landforms Or the Development of Geomorphology.'' (Routledge, 1991): "Lomonosov was a true polymath&mdash;physicist, chemist, natural scientist, poet and linguist…."[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415056268&id=eQSU3twu2rcC&pg=PA169&lpg=PA169&sig=nk100Z5lO4DSR461YJQayL0_chs p. 169] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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*'''[[Leonardo da Vinci]]''' (1452–1519)<ref>{{cite book|title=The Renaissance in Europe: An Anthology|first=Peter|last=Elmer|coauthors=Nicholas Webb, Roberta Wood|publisher=Yale University Press|year=2000|id=ISBN }} "The following selection... shows why this famous Renaissance polymath considered painting to be a science..."</ref><ref>[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0300082223&id=EjxaFzRO4lAC&pg=PA180&lpg=PA180&sig=SxLNAzJ-sgNJZKozR40uisBYzCk p. 180]</ref>  "In Leonardo Da Vinci, of course, he had as his subject not just an ordinary Italian painter, but the prototype of the universal genius, the 'Renaissance man,' ..."; "prodigious polymath.... Painter, sculptor, engineer, astronomer, anatomist, biologist, geologist, physicist, architect, philosopher, actor, singer, musician, humanist."<ref>{{cite book|title=Life Is Not Work, Work Is Not Life: Simple Reminders for Finding Balance in a 24-7 World|first=Robert K.|last= Johnston|coauthors= J Walker Smith|publisher=Council Oak Books|year=2003|id=ISBN }} [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN1885171544&id=qfC90Szju3cC&pg=PA1&lpg=PA1&sig=h1ZO-X1ZKHCfIGFSMJucORZY-kY p. 1]</ref>
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*'''[[Shen Kuo]]''' (1031–1095), a [[China|Chinese]] scientist, statesman, mathematician, astronomer, meteorologist, geologist, zoologist, botanist, pharmacologist, agronomist, ethnographer, encyclopedist, poet, general, diplomat, hydraulic engineer, inventor, academy chancellor, finance minister, and inspector; "Chinese polymath and astronomer who studied medicine, but became renown for his engineering ability."<ref>[http://www.bookrags.com/research/shen-kua-scit-021234 Shen Kua], ''Science and Its Times.'' (Thomson Gale). Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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===Renaissance ideal today===
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*'''[[Herbert Simon]]''' (1916-2001), "Simon is a very distinguished polymath, famous for work in psychology and computer science, philosophy of science, a leader in artificial intelligence, and a Nobel Prize winner in Economics."<ref>James Robert Brown. 1999. ''Philosophy of Mathematics: An Introduction to a World of Proofs and Pictures.'' (Routledge), [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415122759&id=D4wyGRAs6d0C&pg=PA51&lpg=PA51&sig=J6IsUTjXigSTxlu58fKuYE0OLzc p. 51] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
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During the Renaissance, the ideal of [[Renaissance humanism]] included the acquisition of almost all available important knowledge. At that time, several universal geniuses seem to have come close to that ideal, with actual achievements in multiple fields. With the passage of time however, "universal learning" has begun to appear ever more self-contradictory. For example, a famous dispute between "[[Jacob Burckhardt]] (whose ''Die Kultur der Renaissance in Italien'' of 1860 established Alberti as the prototype of the Renaissance Man) and [[Julius von Schlosser]] (whose ''Die Kunstliteratur'' of 1924 expresses discontent with Burckhardt's assessments on several counts)" deals with the issue of whether Alberti was indeed a [[wikt:dilettante|dilettante]] or an actual Universal Man;<ref>[http://muse.jhu.edu/cgi-bin/access.cgi?uri=/journals/common_knowledge/v010/10.2andersen.html Muse.jhu]</ref> while an 1863 article about rhetoric said, for instance: "an universal genius is not likely to attain to distinction and to eminence in
 
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any thing [''[[sic]]'']. To achieve her best results, and to produce her most matured fruit, Genius must bend all her energies in one direction; strive for one object; keep her brain and hand upon one desired purpose and aim".<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?vid=OCLC01768790&id=lNkRAAAAIAAJ&pg=PP12&dq=%22universal+genius+is%22#PRA4-PA262,M1 Google books]</ref>
 
  
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Since it is considered extremely difficult to genuinely acquire an encyclopaedic knowledge, and even more to be proficient in several fields at the level of an expert (see [[expertise]] about research in this area), not to mention to achieve excellence or recognition in multiple fields, the word polymath, in both senses, may also be used, often ironically, with a potentially negative connotation as well. Under this connotation, by sacrificing depth for breadth, the polymath becomes a "[[jack of all trades, master of none]]." For many specialists, in the context of today's [[hyperspecialization]], the ideal of a Renaissance man is judged to be an [[anachronism]], since it is not uncommon that a specialist can barely dominate the accumulated knowledge of more than just one restricted subfield in his whole life, and many renowned experts have been made famous only for dominating different subfields or traditions or for being able to integrate the knowledge of different subfields or traditions.  
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*'''[[Mary Somerville]]''' (1780–1872), "Somerville was the most celebrated woman scientist of her time. A polymath, she wrote on [[astronomy]], [[mathematics]], [[physics]], [[chemistry]], [[mineralogy]], and [[geology]], among other subjects." "Somerville was the most celebrated woman scientist of her time. A polymath, she wrote on astronomy, mathematics, physics, chemistry, mineralogy, and geology, among other subjects…" <ref>Elizabeth Campbell Denlinger. 2005. ''Before Victoria: extraordinary women of the British Romantic era.'' (Columbia University Press): [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0231136307&id=dVIGcfOMwn8C&pg=PA135&lpg=PA135&ots=nsmBAeQ1dE&dq=%22mary+somerville%22+polymath&sig=qYFLGL5vNjHRtX-zPyRujiPvOQo p. 135] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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In addition, today, expertise is often associated with documents, certifications, diplomas, and degrees attributing to such and a person who seems to have an abundance of these is often perceived as having more education than practical "working" experience. [[Autodidact]]ic polymaths often combine [[didactic]] education and expertise in multiple fields with autodidactic research and experience to create the Renaissance ideal.
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*'''[[Rabindranath Tagore]]''' (1861–1941), an [[British Raj|Indian]] [[Bengali people|Bengali]] polymath; "He was a polymath: a poet, fiction writer, dramatist, painter, educator, political thinker, philosopher of science."<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/asia/asia/magazine/1999/990823/tagore1.html Rabindranath Tagore], ''TIME 100''. Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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Many fields of interest take years of singleminded devotion to achieve expertise, often requiring starting at an early age. Also, many require cultural familiarity that may be inaccessible to someone not born and raised in that culture. In many such cases, it is realistically possible to achieve only knowledge of [[theory]] if not practical experience. For example, on a [[safari]], a jungle native will be a more effective guide than an [[United States|American]] scientist who may be educated in the theories of jungle survival but did not grow up acquiring his knowledge the hard way.
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*'''[[John von Neumann]]''' (1903–1957), physicist, mathematician, [[game theory|game theorist]], economist, and pioneering computer scientist. "It isn't often that the human race produces a polymath like von Neumann, then sets him to work in the middle of the biggest crisis in human history…"<ref>Howard Rheingold. ''Tools for Thought: the history and future of mind-expanding technology.'' (MIT Press, 2000), [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0262681153&id=k6auljJ9hJUC&pg=RA1-PA66&lpg=RA1-PA66&ots=FG9g37Cj98&dq=%22von+neumann%22+polymath&sig=_M-KR1VdxwT43TcD-0nSgUrFMrI p. 66] Retrieved May 25, 2008.
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</ref> "Other luminaries would follow Einstein to New Jersey, including the dazzling Hungarian polymath, John von Neumann…"<ref>Rebecca Goldstein. 2005. ''Incompleteness: The Proof and Paradox of Kurt Godel.'' (new York: W. W. Norton & Company), [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0393051692&id=qV4DJlEcDpMC&pg=RA1-PA19&lpg=RA1-PA19&dq=%22von+neumann%22+polymath&sig=dOuSon73UuDUOwJX1MZ7P0w_M7M p. 19] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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However, those supporting the ideal of the Renaissance man today would say that the specialist's understanding of the interrelation of knowledge from different fields is too narrow and that a synthetic comprehension of different fields is unavailable to him, or, if they embrace the Renaissance ideal even more deeply, that the human development of the specialist is truncated by the narrowness of his view. What is much more common today than the universal approach to knowledge from a single polymath, is the multidisciplinary approach to knowledge which derives from several experts in different fields.
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*'''[[H. G. Wells]]''' (1866–1946); "Fifty years ago, the British polymath and amateur historian was able to compress the history of the world up to 1920 into one volume…"<ref>Alden Whitman, (1972): "A World History by 42 Professors," ''The New York Times'', July 18, 1972, 23: "Fifty years ago, the British polymath and amateur historian was able to compress the history of the world up to 1920 into one volume of 1171 pages weighing 3 pounds 3 ounces…. Now a somewhat similar book, concededly inspired by Wells, has been published. It is the work not of one man, but of 42."</ref>
  
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== Polymath and [[polyhistor]] compared ==
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*'''[[Thomas Young (scientist)|Thomas Young]]''' (1773–1829), British polymath, scientist, and [[Egyptology|Egyptologist]], after whom [[Young's modulus]], Young's [[double-slit experiment]], the [[Young-Laplace equation]] and the Young-Dupré equation were named. He also studied [[vision]] and coined the term [[Indo-European languages]].
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Many [[Dictionary|dictionaries]] of word origins list these words as [[synonym]]s or, as words with very similar meanings. [[Thomas Moore]] took the words as corresponding to similarly erudite "polys" in one of his poems "Off I fly, careering far/ In chase of Pollys, prettier far/ Than any of their namesakes are, /—The Polymaths and Polyhistors, Polyglots and all their sisters."<ref>[http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/8187 The Complete Poems of Sir Thomas Moore by Thomas Moore - Project Gutenberg<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref>
 
  
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According to the [[Oxford English Dictionary]], the words mean practically the same; "the classical Latin word polyhistor was used exclusively, and the Greek word frequently, of [[Alexander Polyhistor]]," but polymathist appeared later, and then polymath. Thus today, regardless of any differentiation they may have had when originally coined, they are often taken to mean the same thing.
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===Renaissance Men===
  
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The root terms ''histor'' and ''math'' have similar meanings in their [[etymological]] antecedents (to learn, learned, knowledge), though with some initial and [[:wikt: ancillarily|ancillarily]] added differing qualities. Innate in ''historíā'' ([[Greek language|Greek]] and Latin) is that the learning takes place via [[inquiry]] and [[narrative]]. ''Hístōr'' also implies that the [[polyhistor]] displays [[erudition]] and wisdom. From [[Proto-Indo-European language|Proto-Indo-European]] it shares a root with the word "''wit''." Inquiry and narrative are specific sets of [[Heuristics|pedagogical and research heuristics]].  
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[[Image:Leonardo self.jpg|thumb|180px|[[Leonardo da Vinci]] is regarded in many Western cultures as the archetypal "Renaissance Man".]]
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The following people represent prime examples of "Renaissance Men" and "universal geniuses," so to say "polymaths" in the strictest interpretation of the secondary meaning of the word. The list also includes some of the ''Hakeem'' of the [[Islamic Golden Age]] (also known as the "Islamic Renaissance"), who are considered equivalent to the Renaissance Men of the European Renaissance era.
  
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Polyhistoric is the corresponding adjective. The word polyhistory (meaning varied learning), when used, is often derogatory.
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*'''[[Al-Farabi]] (Alfarabi)''' (870–950/951), a [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]]<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9033714/al-Farabi Encyclopædia Britannica Article on al-Farabi] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> or [[Persian people|Persian]]<ref>[http://users.ox.ac.uk/~worc0337/authors/al-farabi.html Philosophers: al-Fārābi] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> [[Muslim]] who was known as ''The second teacher'' because he had great influence on science and philosophy for several centuries, and was widely regarded to be second only to [[Aristotle]] in knowledge in his time. Farabi made notable contributions to the fields of mathematics, philosophy, medicine and music. As a philosopher and Neo-Platonist, he wrote rich commentary on Aristotle's work. He is also credited for categorizing [[logic]] into two separate groups, the first being "idea" and the second being "proof." Farabi wrote books on [[sociology]] and a notable book on music titled ''Kitab al-Musiqa'' (The Book of Music). He played and invented a varied number of [[musical instrument]]s and his pure [[Arabian tone system]] is still used in [[Arabic music]].<ref>[http://www.islamonline.net/english/Science/2002/01/article20.shtml Abu Al-Nasr Al-Farabi: The Second Teacher] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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==List of recognized polymaths==
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*'''[[Averroes|Ibn Rushd]] (Averroes)''' (1126–1198), an [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]] Arab philosopher, doctor, physician, jurist, lawyer, astronomer, mathematician, and theologan; "Ibn-Rushd, a polymath also known as Averroes;"<ref>[http://go.webassistant.com/wa/cont_pub_view_item.lhtml?-Token.Id=23316&-Token.cId=100427&-Nothing Top 100 Events of the Millennium], ''[[Life (magazine)|Life magazine]]''. Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> "Doctor, Philosopher, Renaissance Man."<ref>Caroline Stone, "Doctor, Philosopher, Renaissance Man," ''Saudi Aramco World'' (May-June 2003): 8–15.</ref>
  
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The following people have been described as "polymaths" by several sources—fulfilling the '''primary definition''' of the term—although there may not be expert consensus that each is a ''prime example'' in the ''secondary'' meaning, as "renaissance men" and "universal geniuses" (see [[#Some Renaissance Men|Some ''Renaissance Men'']] above for prime examples of "renaissance men" or "universal geniuses").
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*'''[[Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī]]''' (973–1048), a [[Persian people|Persian]] scientist, physicist, anthropologist, astronomer, astrologer, encyclopedist, geodesist, geographer, geologist, historian, mathematician, natural historian, pharmacist, physician, philosopher, scholar, teacher, [[Ash'ari]] [[Kalam|theologian]], and traveler; "al-Biruni was a polymath and traveler (to [[History of India|India]]), making contributions in mathematics, geography and geology, natural history, calendars and astronomy;"<ref>Paul Murdin (2000). "al-Biruni, Abu Raihan (973–1048)," ''Encyclopedia of Astronomy and Astrophysics.'' (Bristol: Institute of Physics Publishing.</ref> "al-Biruni, a scholar in many disciplines - from [[linguistics]] to [[mineralogy]] - and perhaps medieval [[Uzbekistan]]'s most universal genius."<ref>Koïchiro Matsuura.
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[http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001206/120699E.pdf United Nations: Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization], [[UNESCO]]. Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
  
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*'''[[Imhotep]]''' (fl. 2650–2611 B.C.E.); [[Egyptians|Egyptian]] [[chancellor]], [[Ancient Egyptian medicine|physician]], and [[Ancient Egyptian architecture|architect]]; "Imhotep, circa 2650 B.C.E. (who was revered as being at least semi-divine until the [[Late Period of ancient Egypt|Late Period]], although some of this reverence may be due to his status as physician and all-round polymath)."<ref>[http://www.ancientworlds.net/aw/Article/436803 The Egyptian Building Mania], ''Acta Divrna'', Vol. III, Issue IV, January, 2004.</ref>
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*'''[[Nicolaus Copernicus]]''' (1473–1543); among the great polymaths of the Renaissance, Copernicus was a mathematician, astronomer, physician, classical scholar, translator, Catholic cleric, jurist, governor, military leader, diplomat and economist. Amid his extensive responsibilities, astronomy figured as little more than an avocation—yet it was in that field that he made his mark upon the world.
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*'''[[Aristotle]]''' (384–322 B.C.E.); <ref>"He was a remarkable polymath. He made major contributions to logic, metaphysics, the natural sciences (above all [[biology]]), [[psychology]], [[ethics]], [[literary criticism]]..");{{cite book|title=The Infinite|first = A. W.|last=Moore|publisher=Routledge|year=2001|id=ISBN }} [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415252857&id=Vnm6X_g0pc8C&pg=PA34&lpg=PA34&sig=v7uy0RAX2SGKvXG8R5jsG8suw98 p. 34]</ref> "Aristotle was an extraordinary polymath..."<ref>{{cite book|title=A Brief History Of Citizenship|first=Derek|last=Heater|year=2004|publisher=New York University Press|id=ISBN }}, "Aristotle was an extraordinary polymath, although only two of his great range of works, which were probably in origin lectures, interest us here."[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0814736726&id=c-falFSTRQwC&pg=PA16&lpg=PA16&sig=_nR6soRWgfnkVgha_VDwD8H0OAw p. 16]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Geber]] (Jabir ibn Hayyan)''' (721–815), an [[Arab]] [[Muslim]] [[Alchemy (Islam)|chemist, alchemist]], [[Islamic astrology|astrologer]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Muslim inventions|engineer]], [[Islamic medicine|pharmacist, physician]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], and [[Islamic science|physicist]]; "Jābir was a polymath who wrote 300 books on philosophy, 1,300 books on mechanical devices and military machinery, and hundreds of books on alchemy."<ref>[http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/arabic/bioJ.html Bio-Bibliographies], United States National Library of Medicine.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Muhammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī]] (Algoritmi)''' (780-850), a [[Islamic mathematics|Persian mathematician]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Islamic astrology|astrologer]], [[Earth scientist]], [[Islamic scholar]], and [[geographer]].<ref name=Alavi>Karima Alavi,
 
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[http://ccas.georgetown.edu/files/CCAS_Tapestry_of_Travel_lores.pdf Tapestry of Travel], Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, [[Georgetown University]].</ref>
 
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*'''[[Al-Jahiz]]''' (781-869), an [[East Africa]]n [[Arab]] scholar and [[Arabic language|Arabic]] [[prose]] writer of works on [[Arabic literature]], [[history]], [[biology]], [[zoology]], [[Mu'tazili]] [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosophy]] and [[Kalam|theology]], and politico-religious [[polemic]]s.<ref name=Sardar>[[Ziauddin Sardar]], [http://www.cgcu.net/imase/islam_science_philosophy.htm Science in Islamic philosophy]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Al-Kindi]] (Alkindus)''' (801–873), an [[Islamic astronomy|Arab astronomer]], [[geographer]], [[Islamic mathematics|mathematician]], [[Meteorology|meteorologist]], [[Islamic music|musician]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], [[Islamic medicine|physician]], [[Islamic science|physicist, scientist]], and [[Political aspects of Islam|politician]]; "he (Al-Kindî) was an omnivorous polymath, studying everything, writing 265 treatises about everything—arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, meteorology, geography, physics, politics, music, medicine, philosophy."<ref>[[Will Durant]] ([[cf.]] [http://muslimheritage.com/topics/default.cfm?ArticleID=650 Innovations in Islamic Sciences], Foundation for Science Technology and Civilisation).</ref>
 
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*'''[[Muhammad ibn Zakarīya Rāzi]] (Rhazes)''' (865-925), a [[Islamic medicine|Persian physician]], [[Alchemy (Islam)|alchemist, chemist]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]] and scholar.<ref name=Sardar/>
 
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*'''[[Abu al-Hasan 'Alī al-Mas'ūdī]]''' (896-956), an [[Historiography of early Islam|Arab historian]], [[Earth scientist]], [[Islamic scholar]], [[geographer]], [[geologist]], and traveller.<ref name=Alavi/>
 
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*'''[[Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi]] (Abulcasis)''' (936-1013), an [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]]-[[Arab]] [[Islamic medicine|physician, surgeon]], [[Alchemy (Islam)|chemist]], [[cosmetologist]], and [[Islamic science|scientist]].<ref>Yasmin Khan (2006), [http://www.scienceinschool.org/2006/issue3/missing 1000 years of missing science], [[Science Museum (London)|Science Museum]].</ref>
 
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*'''[[Al-Muqaddasi]]''' (b. 945), an [[Arab]] [[geographer]], [[Social geography|social geographer]], [[Earth scientist]], [[Islamic scholar]], and traveller.<ref name=Alavi/>
 
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*'''[[Abhinavagupta]]''' (fl. 975–1025), an [[History of India|Indian]] [[Indian philosophy|philosopher]], [[literary criticism|literary critic]], [[Shaivism|Shaivite]], [[aesthetics|aesthetist]], [[Music of India|musician]], [[Indian poetry|poet]], [[Theatre in India|dramatist]], [[dance]]r, [[exegesis|exegetical]] [[theology|theologian]], and [[Indian logic|logician]]; "the great Kashmiri philosopher and polymath, Abhinavagupta".<ref>Hiram Woodward (2004). Review of ''Indian esoteric Buddhism: A social history of the Tantric movement'' by Ronald M. Davidson, ''Journal of Southeast Asian Studies'' '''35''', p. 329–354.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Su Song]]''' (1020–1101), a [[Song Dynasty]] [[China|Chinese]] [[statesman]], [[astronomer]], [[cartographer]], [[horologist]], [[pharmacologist]], [[mineralogist]], [[zoologist]], [[botanist]], [[mechanical engineer]], [[architect]], and [[ambassador]] to the [[Liao Dynasty]]; his most famous achievement was applying an [[escapement]] mechanism and the world's first known endless-power transmitting [[chain drive]] to operate the [[armillary sphere]], opening doors, and mechanical-operated [[manikin]]s (who announced the time on plaques and by sounding drums and bells) of his [[astronomical clock|astronomical]] [[clock tower]];<ref name="needham volume 4 part 2 111">Needham, Joseph (1986). Science ''and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Physics and Physical Technology, Part 2, Mechanical Engineering''. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd. Page 111.</ref> the British historian, [[sinologist]], and [[biochemist]] [[Joseph Needham]] stated that Su Song published "the greatest horological treatise of the Chinese middle ages."<ref name="needham volume 4 part 2 32 33">Needham, Joseph (1986). Science ''and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Physics and Physical Technology, Part 2, Mechanical Engineering''. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd. Pages 32–33.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Shen Kuo]]''' (1031–1095), a [[China|Chinese]] [[History of science and technology in China|scientist]], [[statesman]], [[Chinese mathematics|mathematician]], [[Chinese astronomy|astronomer]], [[meteorologist]], [[geologist]], [[zoologist]], [[botanist]], [[pharmacologist]], [[agronomist]], [[ethnographer]], [[encyclopedist]], [[poet]], [[general]], [[diplomat]], [[hydraulic]] [[engineer]], [[inventor]], [[academy]] [[chancellor]], [[finance minister]], and [[inspector]]; "Chinese polymath and astronomer who studied medicine, but became renown for his engineering ability."<ref>[http://www.bookrags.com/research/shen-kua-scit-021234 Shen Kua], ''Science and Its Times'', [[Thomson Gale]].</ref>
 
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*'''[[Omar Khayyám]]''' (1048–1131), a [[History of Iran|Persian]] [[Persian literature|poet, writer]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Islamic mathematics|mathematician]], [[Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], and [[skeptic]]. <ref>"a...polymath".[http://www.newenglishreview.org/blog_direct_link.cfm?blog_id=7461 Omar Khyam], The Iconoclast, New English Review, 1 May 2007.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Ibn Bajjah]] (Avempace)''' (d. 1138), an [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]] [[Arab]] [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], [[Islamic medicine|physician]], [[Islamic science|physicist, scientist]], and [[Arabic poetry|poet]].<ref name=Sardar/>
 
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*'''[[Acharya Hemachandra]]''' (1089–1172), an [[History of India|Indian]] [[scholar]], [[Indian poetry|poet]], [[Linguistics|linguist]], [[Vyakarana|grammarian]], historian, [[Indian philosophy|philosopher]], and [[prosody|prosodist]]; "the great polymath Hemacandra";<ref>Walter H. Maurer (1971). Review of ''Pramana-Naya-Tattvalokalamkara of Vadi Devasuri by Hari Satya Bhattacharya by Hari Satya Bhattacharya, ''Philosophy East and West'' '''21''' (1) p. 98–99.</ref> "Hemacandra (1089–1172) was one of the great polymaths of medieval India."<ref>John E. Cort (November 1999). Review of Hemacandra, R. C. C. Fynes, ''The Lives of the Jain Elders'', ''The Journal of Asian Studies'' '''58''' (4), p. 1166–1167.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Ibn Zuhr]] (Avenzoar)''' (1091-1161), an [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]] [[Arab]] [[Islamic medicine|physician, pharmacist, surgeon]], [[Islamic scholar]], and teacher.<ref name=Sardar/>
 
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* '''[[Muhammad al-Idrisi]] (Dreses)''' (1100-1166), a [[Moroccan]] [[Arab]] [[cartographer]], court [[official]], [[Earth scientist]], [[geographer]] and traveller.<ref name=Sardar/>
 
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* '''[[Ibn Tufail]] (Abubacer)''' (1105-1185), an [[al-Andalus|Andalusian]] [[Arab]] "polymath scholar",<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9011411/Avempace Avempace], ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'', 2007.</ref> [[Early Islamic philosophy|Islamic philosopher]], [[Islamic medicine|physician]], [[Arabic literature|Arabic writer]], [[novel]]ist, and court [[official]].
 
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* '''[[Ibn al-Nafis]]''' (1213–1288), an [[Islamic medicine|Arab physician, anatomist, biologist, physiologist, surgeon]], [[Ophthalmology in medieval Islam|ophthalmologist]], [[Ulema]], [[Hafiz (Quran)|Hafiz]], [[Muhaddith]], [[Shafi`i]] [[Fiqh|jurist]] and [[Sharia|lawyer]], [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] [[Kalam|theologian]], [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosopher]], [[Arabic literature|litterateur]], [[Logic in Islamic philosophy|logician]], [[novel]]ist, [[Psychology|psychologist]], [[Islamic science|scientist]], [[science fiction]] writer, [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer, cosmologist]], [[futurist]], [[geologist]], [[Arabic grammar|grammarian, linguist]], [[Historiography of early Islam|historian, philosopher of history]], [[Philosophy of religion|philosopher of religion]], [[Natural philosophy|natural philosopher]] and [[Early Muslim sociology|sociologist]]; "Ibnul-Nafees was not only a great physician and discoverer of the minor [[blood circulation]] ([[pulmonary circulation]]), but he also had many interests, views and works about many other branches of knowledge."<ref>Dr. Abu Shadi Al-Roubi, [http://www.islamset.com/isc/nafis/drroubi.html Ibnul-Nafees As a Philosopher], ''Encyclopedia of Islamic World''.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Leone Battista Alberti]]''' (1404–1472), "often considered the archetype of the Renaissance polymath"<ref>{{cite book|title=The Cambridge History of Italian Literature|first=Peter|last=Brand|coauthors=Lino Pertile|year=1999|publisher=Cambridge University Press|id=ISBN }} "Leon Battista Alberti), more versatile than Bruni, is often considered the archetype of the Renaissance polymath." [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0521666228&id=3uq0bObScHMC&pg=PA138&lpg=PA138&sig=nwB1Gggq981himLrVnBBRuaqScQ p. 138]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Suyuti]]''' (1445-1505), an [[Egyptians|Egyptian]] [[Arab]] [[Ulema|Islamic scholar]], [[Sunni]] [[Kalam|theologian]], [[Hanafi]] [[Fiqh|jurist]], [[Arabic grammar]]ian and linguist, [[Historiography of early Islam|historian]], and [[Early Islamic philosophy|Islamic philosopher]].<ref name=Sardar/>
 
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*'''[[Akbar the Great]]''' (1542-1605), an [[History of India|Indian]] [[Mughal emperor]], "polymath," [[architect]], [[artisan]], [[artist]], [[armorer]], [[blacksmith]], [[carpenter]], [[construction worker]], [[engineer]], [[general]], [[inventor]], [[lace]]maker, [[ruler]], [[technologist]], [[theologian]], and [[writer]].<ref name=Habib>Irfan Habib (1992), "Akbar and Technology," ''Social Scientist'' '''20''' (9-10), pp. 3-15 [3-4].</ref>
 
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*'''[[Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak]]''' (1551-1602), an [[History of India|Indian]] "polymath," [[vizier]], [[biographer]], [[general]], [[metaphysician]], [[philosopher]], [[poet]], [[prose]] writer, [[statesman]], and [[theologian]].<ref>[http://www.ampltd.co.uk/digital_guides/art_of_india/documents/Mughal.pdf Mughal], Art of India, [[Victoria and Albert Museum]], Adam Matthew Publications.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Fathullah Shirazi]]''' (c. 1582), a [[Persian people|Persian]]-[[History of India|Indian]] "polymath," [[artist]], [[astronomer]], [[mathematician]], [[mechanical engineer]], [[medic]], [[philosopher]],<ref>William Gervase Clarence Smith, [http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/economicHistory/GEHN/GEHNPDF/ScienceandTechnology-WGCS.pdf Science and technology in early modern Islam, c.1450-c.1850], p. 25, [[London School of Economics]].</ref> scholar, [[physician]], [[theologian]],<ref name=Habib/> and inventor of [[Machine gun|multi-barrel gun]].<ref>A. K. Bag (2005), "Fathullah Shirazi: Cannon, Multi-barrel Gun and Yarghu," ''Indian Journal of History of Science'' '''40''' (3), pp. 431-436.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Athanasius Kircher]]''' (b. 1601), "a 'polymath' if there ever was one. He studied a variety of subjects including... music, Egyptology, Sinology, botany, magnetism";<ref>{{cite book|title=A Barfield Reader|first=Owen A.|last=Barfield|year=1999|publisher=Wesleyan University Press}}, [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0819563617&id=_Z669a_wMjIC&pg=PA47&lpg=PA47&sig=4VT5l5VwPY0qpP2-A-UiFb3ufjY p. 47]</ref> ''Athanasius Kircher: The Last Man Who Knew Everything'' (book title)<ref>{{cite book|title=Athanasius Kircher: The Last Man Who Knew Everything|first=Paula|last=Findlen (ed)|year=2004|publisher=Routledge (U. K.)|id=ISBN}}, [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415940168&id=6nnokX4nxtcC&pg=PA209&lpg=PA209&sig=Fq-XvF8__W1z-t-YHLGTUrWv78c p. 209]: "the Jesuit polymath Athanasius Kircher"</ref>
 
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*'''[[Hajji Khalifa|Katib Chelebi]]''' (1609-1657), also known as '''Hajji Khalifa''', was an [[Ottoman Turks|Ottoman]] [[scholar]], [[bibliographer]], [[geographer]], and [[historian]]. His most famous work was the ''Bibliographical Encyclopaedia'', written in [[Arabic]]. He also wrote many books in [[Turkish language|Turkish]] on historical and geographical subjects. <ref>{{cite book|last=Lewis|first=Bernard|title=Islam in History: Ideas, People, and Events in the Middle East|publisher=Open Court Publishing|year=2001|pages=234|isbn=0812695186}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Dankoff|first=Robert|title=An Ottoman Mentality: The World of Evliya Celebi|publisher=BRILL|year=2004|pages=223|isbn=9004137157}}</ref>
 
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*'''[[Blaise Pascal]]''' (1623–1662) was a [[France|French]] [[mathematician]], [[philosopher]] and [[theologian]].<ref>[http://www.ahtg.net/TpA/Euronet.html Euronet website]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Ibrahim Muteferrika]]''' (1674-1745), an [[Ottoman Turks|Ottoman]] [[publisher]], [[Printer (publisher)|printer]], [[courtier]], [[diplomat]], [[man of letters]], [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Historiography of early Islam|historian, historiographer]], [[Ulema|Islamic scholar]] and [[Kalam|theologian]], [[Early Muslim sociology|sociologist]],<ref>Vefa Erginbas (2005), [http://digital.sabanciuniv.edu/tezler/etezfulltext/erginbasv.pdf Forerunner Of The Ottoman Enlightenment: Ibrahim Muteferrika and His Intellectual Landscape], p. 1 & 46-47, [[Sabancı University]].</ref> and the first [[Muslim]] to run a [[printing press]] with movable [[Arabic alphabet|Arabic]] [[Movable type|type]].<ref>[http://vitrine.library.uu.nl/wwwroot/en/texts/Rarqu54.htm Presentation of Katip Çelebi, ''Kitâb-i Cihân-nümâ li-Kâtib Çelebi''], at the [[Utrecht University]] Library</ref>
 
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*'''[[Benjamin Franklin]]''' (1706–1790), "The ultimate creole intellectual... A true polymath of the Enlightenment style, he distinguished himself on both sides of the Atlantic by researches in natural sciences as well as politics and literature."<ref>{{cite book|title=The English Literatures of America,|first=Myra|last=Jehlen|coauthors=Michael Warner|year=1997|publisher=Routledge|id=ISBN}} [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415908736&id=iveyYA_jI_sC&pg=PA667&lpg=PA667&sig=IeaSfLkF5kYFdkv3j9Fm7dRiAXA p. 667]</ref> He was a leading [[author]], [[political theorist]], [[politician]], [[Printer (publisher)|printer]], [[scientist]], [[inventor]], [[activism|civic activist]], and [[diplomat]].
 
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*'''[[Mikhail Lomonosov]]''' (1711–1765), "Lomonosov was a true polymath&mdash;physicist, chemist, natural scientist, poet and linguist...."<ref>{{cite book|title=The History of the Study of Landforms Or the Development of Geomorphology|first=Richard J.|last=Chorley|coauthors=Robert P Beckinsale|publisher=Routledge|year=1991|id=ISBN}}: "Lomonosov was a true polymath&mdash;physicist, chemist, natural scientist, poet and linguist...."[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415056268&id=eQSU3twu2rcC&pg=PA169&lpg=PA169&sig=nk100Z5lO4DSR461YJQayL0_chs p. 169]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Thomas Jefferson]]''' (1743-1826), some sources describe him as "polymath and President," putting "polymath" first;<ref>{{cite book|title=Inventing the Earth: Ideas on Landscape Development Since 1740|first= Barbara A.|last=Kennedy|year=2006|publisher=Blackwell Publishing|id=ISBN }} "Jefferson, Thomas). Polymath and third President of the USA."[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN1405101873&id=qu9tqlU-7hAC&pg=PA132&lpg=PA132&sig=uRmtxBi4mdTDwrXDZ_J22ASKnUU p. 132]</ref>  [[John F. Kennedy]] famously commented, addressing a group of Nobel laureates, that it was "the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House&mdash;- with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone."<ref>{{cite book|title=Cassell's Humorous Quotations|first=Nigel|last=Rees|year=2003|publisher=Sterling Publishing Company|id=ISBN }} [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0304365882&id=yDKglJxZJskC&pg=PA392&lpg=PA392&sig=1jJe3Nw2MGhL5n3TjeT4zNf5SA8 p. 392]. Note that Jefferson is identified as "American Polymath and President."</ref>
 
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*'''[[Alexander von Humboldt]]''' (1769–1859), Humboldt's quantitative work on botanical geography was foundational to the field of biogeography. An inveterate explorer and a prolific author, von Humboldt was a complex figure: the archetypic modern, rational, and international scientist.<ref>{{cite book|title=Key Concepts in Geography|first=Sarah|last=Holloway|coauthors=Stephen Rice, Gill Valentine|year=2003|publisher=Sage Publications, Inc.|id=ISBN }} [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0761973893&id=5hFvB6WqbKgC&pg=PP27&lpg=PP27&sig=CgRDc3MyqPyt36k26dNiYOFTjPI p. 27]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Samuel Taylor Coleridge]]''' (1772–1834), [[poet]], [[critic]], and [[philosopher]]<ref>{{cite book|title=The Victorian World Picture|first=David|last=Newsome|year=1999|publisher=Cambridge University Press|id=ISBN }} "Coleridge was unquestionably a polymath, with a universal knowledge unequalled by any thinker of his day." [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0813527589&id=mkivzSGbGLEC&pg=PA259&lpg=PA259&sig=MCas4U7qxxzIQRBAPDdrAxmpzSk p. 259]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Thomas Young (scientist)|Thomas Young]]''' (1773–1829), British polymath, scientist, and [[Egyptologist]], after whom [[Young's modulus]], Young's [[double-slit experiment]], the [[Young-Laplace equation]] and the Young-Dupré equation were named. He also studied vision and coined the term [[Indo-European languages]].
 
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*'''[[Mary Somerville]]''' (1780–1872), "Somerville was the most celebrated woman scientist of her time. A polymath, she wrote on [[astronomy]], [[mathematics]], [[physics]], [[chemistry]], [[mineralogy]], and [[geology]], among other subjects."<!-- conflicting citations on the origin of scientist term; removing until some authoritative research on the history of the term is done. It was of her that the term "[[scientist]]" was first coined by [[William Whewell]] in an 1834 review. —><ref>{{cite book|title=Before Victoria: extraordinary women of the British Romantic era|author=Elizabeth Campbell Denlinger|year=2005|publisher=Columbia University Press|id=ISBN}}, [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0231136307&id=dVIGcfOMwn8C&pg=PA135&lpg=PA135&ots=nsmBAeQ1dE&dq=%22mary+somerville%22+polymath&sig=qYFLGL5vNjHRtX-zPyRujiPvOQo p. 135]: "Somerville was the most celebrated woman scientist of her time. A polymath, she wrote on astronomy, mathematics, physics, chemistry, mineralogy, and geology, among other subjects..."</ref>
 
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*'''[[Rafael Francisco Osejo]]''' (1790–1848) "Born in Nicaragua and a prominent figure in the Independence of Central America, knowledgeable about mathematics, philosophy, politics, history and geography, was chamberlain of the Santo Tomas University in Costa Rica and occupied many positions in the government of several central American countries."
 
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*'''[[William Whewell]]''' (1794-1866)
 
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*'''[[Charles Peirce]]'''  (1839–1914), was a [[mathematician]], [[astronomer]], [[chemist]], [[geodesist]], [[surveyor]], [[cartographer]], [[metrologist]], [[spectroscopist]], [[engineer]], [[inventor]]; [[psychologist]], [[philologist]], [[lexicographer]], [[historian]], [[economist]], lifelong student of medicine; book reviewer, [[dramatist]], [[actor]], short story writer; [[phenomenologist]], [[semiotician]], [[logician]], [[rhetorician]] and [[metaphysician]].
 
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*'''[[Joseph Pomeroy Widney]]''' (1841-1938); "[i]n a similarly polymathic vein, Joseph Widney was an early president of the University of Southern California...."<ref>Mike Davis, ''City of Quartz: Excavating the Future in Los Angeles'' (Vintage: 1992).</ref>
 
−
 
 
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*'''[[Henri Poincaré]]''', physicist and mathematician who dabbled extensively in practically every field in mathematics.
 
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*'''[[Jagadis Chandra Bose]]''' (1858-1937), [[Indian]] scientist, [[Bangla science fiction]] writer, and "a rare polymath who was equally at home in [[physics]], [[biology]], [[botany]], [[archaeology]] and [[Bengali literature|literature]]."<ref>[http://frontlineonnet.com/fl2124/stories/20041203003009100.htm A versatile genius], ''[[Frontline (magazine)|Frontline]]'' '''21''' (24), 2004.</ref>
 
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*'''[[Jose Rizal]]''' (1861-1896), a [[Filipino]] polygot, linguist, novelist, poet, journalist, opthalmologist, anthropologist, ethnologist, artist, sociologist and national hero. Rizal's 1896 military trial and execution made him a martyr of the [[Philippine Revolution]]. He is considered to be the "Pride of the Malay race."
 
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*'''[[Rabindranath Tagore]]''' (1861–1941), an [[British Raj|Indian]] [[Bengali people|Bengali]]  polymath; "He was a polymath: a [[Bengali poetry|poet]], [[Bengali literature|fiction writer]], [[Bengali theatre|dramatist]], [[Indian art|painter]], [[Education|educator]], [[Politics of India|political thinker]], [[Philosophy of science|philosopher of science]]."<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/asia/asia/magazine/1999/990823/tagore1.html Rabindranath Tagore], [[Time 100]].</ref>
 
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*'''[[Edward Heron-Allen]]''' (1861–1943) "Heron-Allen is better described as a polymath..."<ref>R.B. Russell, Tartarus Press.</ref> Not only was Heron-Allen a lawyer by trade, he also wrote, lectured on and created violins, was an expert on the art of chiromancy or palmistry, having read palms and analysed the handwriting of luminaries of the period. He wrote on musical, literary and scientific subjects ranging from foraminifera, marine zoology, meteorology, as a Persian scholar translated Classics such as the ''Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam'' and ''The Lament of Baba Tahir'', also wrote on local geographic history, archeology, Buddhist philosophy, the cultivation, gourmet appreciation of and culture of the asparagus, as well as a number of novels and short stories of science fiction and horror written under his pseudonymn of "Christopher Blayre."
 
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*'''[[H. G. Wells]]''' (1866–1946); "Fifty years ago, the British polymath and amateur historian was able to compress the history of the world up to 1920 into one volume..."<ref>Whitman, Alden (1972): "A World History by 42 Professors," ''The New York Times,'' July 18, 1972, p. 23: "Fifty years ago, the British polymath and amateur historian was able to compress the history of the world up to 1920 into one volume of 1171 pages weighing 3 pounds 3 ounces.... Now a somewhat similar book, concededly inspired by Well's, has been published. It is the work not of one man, but of 42."</ref>
 
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*'''[[C. B. Fry]]''' (1872-1956), "Footballer, cricketer, politician and polymath"<ref>{{cite book|title=Cricket: The Golden Age|first=Duncan|last=Steer|year=2003|publisher=Cassell illustrated|id=ISBN-X}} "Footballer, cricketer, politician and polymath C.B. Fry, now commander of a Royal Navy training ship" p.51</ref>
 
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*'''[[Albert Schweitzer]]''' (1875–1965), an Alsatian-German [[theologian]], [[musician]], [[philosopher]], [[humanitarian]], and [[physician]]. He is perhaps most famous for founding and sustaining the Lambaréné Hospital in Gabon, west central Africa, where he spent most of his life. He received the 1952 [[Nobel Peace Prize]] for his philosophy of ''[[Reverence for Life]]'' ("''Ehrfurcht vor dem Leben''"), based on the conviction that the respect for life is the highest principle. His "The Problem of Peace" lecture is considered to be one of the best speeches ever given.
 
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*'''[[Le Corbusier]]''' (1887–1965), a [[Switzerland|Swiss]]-born [[architect]], [[designer]], [[urbanist]], [[writer]], [[painter]], [[poet]], [[theorist]], [[sculptor]], who is famous for his contributions to what now is called [[Modern Architecture]]. In his 30s he became a French citizen. He was a pioneer in theoretical studies of modern design and was dedicated to providing better living conditions for the residents of crowded cities. His career spanned five decades, with his iconic buildings constructed throughout central Europe, India, Russia, and one structure each in North and South America. He was also an urban planner, painter, sculptor, writer, and [[modern furniture]] [[design]]er.
 
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*'''[[William James Sidis]]''' (1898-1944), a child prodigy who wrote on such varied subjects as [[mathematics]], [[cosmology]], [[psychology]], [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]] history, and [[public transport|public transportation]]. "His sister, Helena, said of him that, as an adult, he could learn a new language in one day, and as an adult, he was a true polymath, a 'Renaissance man'."<ref>[http://hiqnews.megafoundation.org/William_Sidis.htm|The Prodigy]</ref>
 
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*'''[[André Malraux]]''' (1901-1976), French novelist, art historian, adventurer and politician;" France's first minister of culture and polymath extraordinaire"<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19961125/ai_n14082504/pg_1 Malraux laid to rest in the Pantheon of heroes | Independent, The (London) | Find Articles at BNET.com<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref>
 
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*'''[[John von Neumann]]''' (1903–1957), Physicist, mathematician, contributions to game theory, economics, pioneering computer scientist. "It isn't often that the human race produces a polymath like von Neumann, then sets him to work in the middle of the biggest crisis in human history..."<ref>
 
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{{cite book|title=Tools for Thought: the history and future of mind-expanding technology|author=Howard Rheingold|publisher=MIT Press|year=2000|id=ISBN}}, [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0262681153&id=k6auljJ9hJUC&pg=RA1-PA66&lpg=RA1-PA66&ots=FG9g37Cj98&dq=%22von+neumann%22+polymath&sig=_M-KR1VdxwT43TcD-0nSgUrFMrI p. 66]
 
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</ref> "Other luminaries would follow Einstein to New Jersey, including the dazzling Hungarian polymath, John von Neumann..."<ref>
 
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{{cite book|title=Incompleteness: The Proof and Paradox of Kurt Godel|author=Rebecca Goldstein|year=2005|publisher=W. W. Norton & Company|id=ISBN}}, [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0393051692&id=qV4DJlEcDpMC&pg=RA1-PA19&lpg=RA1-PA19&dq=%22von+neumann%22+polymath&sig=dOuSon73UuDUOwJX1MZ7P0w_M7M p. 19]
 
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</ref>
 
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*'''[[Herbert Simon]]''' (1916-2001), "Simon is a very distinguished polymath, famous for work in psychology and computer science, philosophy of science, a leader in artificial intelligence, and a Nobel Prize winner in Economics."<ref>{{cite book|title=Philosophy of Mathematics: An Introduction to a World of Proofs and Pictures|first=James Robert|last=Brown|year=1999|publisher=Routledge|id=ISBN}}, [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415122759&id=D4wyGRAs6d0C&pg=PA51&lpg=PA51&sig=J6IsUTjXigSTxlu58fKuYE0OLzc p. 51]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Richard Feynman]]''' (1918-1988), physicist, mathematician, author, artist and musician.
 
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*'''[[Robert Nozick]]''' (1938-2002), American philosopher, political theorist, and economist. Famous for his "unusual method" of drawing upon disciplines outside of the [[social sciences]] (such as [[biology]], [[mathematical statistics]], and [[theology]]) for analysis within his writings and classes he taught at [[Harvard University]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Philosophical Explainations|first=Robert|last=Nozick|year=1981|publisher=Harvard|}}, [[Philosophical Explainations]]</ref>
 
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*'''[[Rowan Williams]]''' (born 1950), [[Archbishop of Canterbury]],"the polymath primate" of All England,<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20020724/ai_n12630410 Leading Article: This awkward priest is a herald of good news | Independent, The (London) | Find Articles at BNET.com<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref>  a "poet who [[polyglot|speaks a dozen languages]],"<ref>[http://listserv.episcopalian.org/wa.exe?A2=ind0201c&L=virtuosity&H=1&P=1264 VIRTUOSITY archives - January 2002, week 3 (#10)<!-- Bot generated title —>]</ref>systematic theologian, former dean of [[Clare College, Cambridge]], co-founder and patron of [[Affirming Catholicism]] and The [[Society of Catholic Priests]], Bard of the Welsh [[Gorsedd]].
 
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*'''[[Steven Pinker]]'''  (born 1954), A [[Canadian-American]] [[experimental psychologist]], [[cognitive scientist]], and author of [[popular science]], Pinker is known for his wide-ranging advocacy of [[evolutionary psychology]] and the [[computational theory of mind]].<ref>http://www.newsweek.com/id/135380/page/2</ref>
 
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=="'Polymath' sportsmen"==
 
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In Britain, phrases such as "polymath sportsman," "sporting polymath," or simply "polymath" are occasionally used in a restricted sense to refer to athletes that have performed at a high level in several very different sports. (One whose accomplishments are limited to athletics would not be considered to be a "polymath" in the usual sense of the word). Examples would include:
 
  
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*[[Howard Baker (baseball)|Howard Baker]] – "Similar claims to the title of sporting polymath could be made for Howard Baker" (who won high jump titles, and played cricket, football, and water polo):<ref>{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of British Football|first=Richard|last=Cox|year=2002|publisher=Routledge|id=ISBN }} [http://books.google.com/books?id=JKbb02bg6zYC&vid=ISBN0714652490&pg=PA15&lpg=PA15&sig=tUjKOwVSoViffVMjO49YDHgNNF0 p. 15]</ref>
+
*'''[[Leonardo da Vinci]]''' (1452–1519)"The following selection… shows why this famous Renaissance polymath considered painting to be a science…"<ref>Peter Elmer and Nicholas Webb. ''The Renaissance in Europe: An Anthology.'' Roberta Wood (Yale University Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0300082227) [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0300082223&id=EjxaFzRO4lAC&pg=PA180&lpg=PA180&sig=SxLNAzJ-sgNJZKozR40uisBYzCk p. 180] Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref> "In Leonardo Da Vinci, of course, he had as his subject not just an ordinary Italian painter, but the prototype of the universal genius, the 'Renaissance man,' …"; "prodigious polymath…. Painter, sculptor, engineer, astronomer, anatomist, biologist, geologist, physicist, architect, philosopher, actor, singer, musician, humanist."<ref>Robert K. Johnston and J. Walker Smith. ''Life Is Not Work, Work Is Not Life: Simple Reminders for Finding Balance in a 24-7 World.'' (Council Oak Books, 2003.  [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN1885171544&id=qfC90Szju3cC&pg=PA1&lpg=PA1&sig=h1ZO-X1ZKHCfIGFSMJucORZY-kY p. 1] Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref>
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*[[Maxwell Woosnam]] - "Sporting polymath is a full-time post..."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://comment.independent.co.uk/columnists_m_z/brian_viner/article1218714.ece|publisher=The Independent|title=Sporting polymath is a full-time post for which only obsessives need apply: It is hard to get the head round the idea that one man excelled in so many sports|author=Brian Viner|date=2006-10-12|accessdate=2006-10-12}}: "I read a book by Mick Collins called All-Round Genius: The Unknown Story of Britain's Greatest Sportsman. It is about a man called Max Woosnam, who...toured Brazil with the famous Corinthians football team in 1913... won an Olympic gold medal for tennis, played golf off scratch, scored a century at Lord's, and made a 147 break on the snooker table."</ref>
 
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*[[Jackie Robinson]] - collegiate [[football]], [[baseball]], [[basketball]], [[track and field]], [[tennis]]; [[Major League Baseball|professional baseball]]
 
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*[[Bo Jackson]] - Professional football, professional baseball, professional basketball, collegiate track and field.
 
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"...I really never imagined myself being a professional athlete."
 
  
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== Fictional polymaths ==
+
*'''[[Galileo Galilei]]''' (1564–1642), "Italian scientist, physicist, and philosopher. Galileo was a true Renaissance man, excelling at many different endeavors, including lute playing and painting."<ref>Eric W. Weisstein, [http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Galileo.html Galileo Galilei (1564–1642)]''scienceworld.wolfram.com''. Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref>
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[[Sherlock Holmes|Sherlock]] and [[Mycroft Holmes]], [[Nero Wolfe]],
 
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[[Gregory House]] of ''[[House (TV series)|House M.D.]]'', [[Robert Goren]] of ''[[Law & Order: Criminal Intent]]'',
 
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[[Main characters of Xenogears#Citan|Citan Uzuki]] of ''[[Xenogears]]'', [[Buckaroo Banzai]], [[Artemis Fowl II]], Grand Admiral Thrawn of ''[[Star Wars]]'', Dunstan Ramsay of [[Robertson Davies]]'s novel ''[[Fifth Business]]'', [[Abraham Van Helsing|Professor Abraham Van Helsing]] of [[Bram Stoker|Bram Stoker's]] [[Dracula]], [[Batman]], [[Mister Peabody]], [[Gil Grissom]] of ''[[CSI: Las Vegas]]'', [[Agent Pendergast]], [[Hannibal Lecter]], [[Doc Savage]], [[Spock|Mr. Spock]] of ''[[Star Trek]]'', [[James Bond]], Jarod of ''[[The Pretender (TV series)|The Pretender]]'', [[Dess]] of ''[[Midnighter's Trilogy]]'' by Scott Westerfeld,
 
−
[[List of Heroes characters with special abilities#Charlie Andrews|Charlie]] of ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]'', [[Angus MacGyver|MacGyver]] and many main characters in the novels of [[Robert A. Heinlein]] could fairly be described as polymaths.  
 
  
−
Polymaths in fiction often have a certain eccentricity about their knowledge, e.g., [[The Doctor (Doctor Who)|Doctor Who]]: "He claims he's (a doctor) of everything."
+
*'''[[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe]]''' (1749–1832) "Germany's greatest man of letters&mdash;poet, critic, playwright, and novelist&mdash;and the last true polymath to walk the earth"<ref>George Eliot ''Middlemarch,'' ed. Gregory Maertz (original 1871) 2004 (Broadview Press) Note by editor of 2004 edition, Gregory Maertz, [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN1551112337&id=4MopnRJ-HmMC&pg=PA710&lpg=PA710&sig=4nAO63zmLS9Ua-x0mevpZA7kSIY p. 710] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> "Goethe comes as close to deserving the title of a universal genius as any man who has ever lived."<ref>Lillian Herlands Hornstein, G. D. Percy, and Calvin S. Brown (Eds) [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0451528417&id=qoNDakvwmWsC&pg=PA299&lpg=PA299&dq=Goethe+%22universal+genius%22&sig=rHKvBf4tXHq5oxQT3JR2j0U7viY ''The Reader's Companion to World Literature''] (Signet Classics, 2002 ISBN 978-0451528414) Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref> "He was essentially the last great European Renaissance man."<ref>Andrea Schulte-Peevers, Sarah Johnstone, Etain O'Carroll, Jeanne Oliver, Tom Parkinson, and Nicola Williams ''[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN1740594711&id=38pxvHefrL0C&pg=PA213&lpg=PA213&dq=%22renaissance+man%22+Goethe&sig=O6eNSbYLxqLaBiQ4jnHfDJwhNU0 Lonely Planet Germany]'' (Lonely Planet Publications, 2004 ISBN  978-1740594714) Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref> His gifts included incalculable contributions to the areas of German literature and the natural sciences. He is credited with discovery of a bone in the human jaw, and proposed a theory of colors. He has a mineral named in his honor, [[goethite]]. He molded the aesthetic properties of the Alps to poetry, thus, changing the local belief from "perfectly hideous" and an "unavoidable misery," to grandeur of the finest most brilliant creation.
  
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In the film [[Phenomenon (film)|Phenomenon]], [[John Travolta]] plays a character who has inexplicably and suddenly become a budding polymath-type individual, somewhat akin to the character in [[Flowers for Algernon]].
+
*'''[[Ibn al-Haytham]] (Alhacen)''' (965–1039), an [[Iraq]]i Arab scientist, physicist, anatomist, physician, psychologist, astronomer, engineer, mathematician, ophthalmologist, philosopher, and [[Ash'ari]] [[Kalam|theologian]]; "a devout, brilliant polymath;"<ref>[http://www.ibnalhaytham.net/custom.em?pid=571860 Review of ''Ibn al-Haytham: First Scientist''], [[Kirkus Reviews]], December 1, 2006.</ref> "a great man and a universal genius, long neglected even by his own people;"<ref>Sami Hamarneh (March 1972). Review of Hakim Mohammed Said, "Ibn al-Haitham," ''Isis'' 63 (1): 118–119. Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> "Ibn al-Haytham provides us with the historical personage of a versatile universal genius."<ref>Laurence Bettany, (1995). "Ibn al-Haytham: an answer to multicultural science teaching?," ''Physics Education'' 30: 247–252.</ref>
  
 +
*'''[[Ibn Khaldun]]''' (1332–1406), an Arab social scientist, sociologist, historian, historiographer, philosopher of history, demographer, economist, linguist, philosopher, political theorist, military theorist, Islamic scholar, Ash'ari theologian, diplomat and statesman; "a still-influential polymath;"<ref>Liat Radcliffe, ''[[Newsweek]]'' (cf. [http://www.complete-review.com/reviews/maroc/himmich1.htm The Polymath by Bensalem Himmich], The Complete Review. Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> "in any epoch ibn Khaldun (1332-1406) would deserve the accolade Renaissance man, a person of many talents and diverse interests."<ref>Marvin E. Gettleman and Stuart Schaar (2003), ''The Middle East and Islamic World Reader.'' (Grove Press, ISBN 0802139361), 54.</ref>
  
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==References and notes==
+
*'''[[Thomas Jefferson]]''' (1743-1826), some sources describe him as "polymath and President," putting "polymath" first,<ref>Barbara A. Kennedy. 2006. ''Inventing the Earth: Ideas on Landscape Development Since 1740.'' (Blackwell Publishing) "Jefferson, Thomas). Polymath and third President of the USA."[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN1405101873&id=qu9tqlU-7hAC&pg=PA132&lpg=PA132&sig=uRmtxBi4mdTDwrXDZ_J22ASKnUU p. 132] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> he is also described as "the walking, talking embodiment of the Enlightenment, a polymath whose list of achievements is as long as it is incredibly varied."<ref>Cormac O'Brien. ''Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents: What Your Teachers Never Told You.'' (Quirk Books, 2004. ISBN 1931686572), 15</ref> [[John F. Kennedy]] famously commented, addressing a group of Nobel laureates, that it was "the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House&mdash;- with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone."<ref>William C. Spragens. ''Popular Images of American Presidents.'' (Greenwood Publishing Group, 1988. ISBN 031322899X), 27</ref>
−
{{reflist|3}}
 
  
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==Further reading==
+
*'''[[Gottfried Leibniz]]''' (1646–1716); "Leibniz was a polymath who made significant contributions in many areas of physics, logic, history, librarianship, and of course philosophy and theology, while also working on ideal languages, mechanical clocks, mining machinery…"<ref>John Shand. 2006. ''Central Works of Philosophy, Volume 2: Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century.'' (McGill-Queen's Press, ch. 3, "G. W. Leibnitz: Monadology," by Douglas Burnham; [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0773530185&id=uslzupLyFt4C&pg=PA61&lpg=PA61&sig=eu8T4DjvDVAcggW68Qv6Oc_6fuU p. 61] Retrieved May 25, 2008.</ref> "A universal genius if ever there was one, and an inexhaustible source of original and fertile ideas, Leibniz was all the more interested in logic because it …"<ref name=bourbaki>Nicolas Bourbaki. ''[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN3540225250&id=IL-SI67hjI4C&pg=PA301&lpg=PA301&dq=Leibniz+%22universal+genius%22&sig=SlqKmspxWH6XLbuiy014aCYcCuY Theory of Sets]'' (Springer, 2004, ISBN 978-3540225256) Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref> "Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz was maybe the last Universal Genius incessantly active in the fields of theology, philosophy, mathematics, physics, ...."<ref name=bourbaki/> "Leibniz was perhaps the last great Renaissance man who in Bacon's words took all knowledge to be his province."<ref>N. Jolley ''[http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0415283388&id=Lf_14LCC8mcC&pg=PA14&lpg=PA14&dq=%22renaissance+man%22+Leibniz&sig=0dYnbMJ0H6tpKdIVvx6WjakhfZ8 Leibniz]'' (Routledge, 2005, ISBN 978-0415283380) Retrieved May 9, 2008.</ref>
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*[http://www.martinfrost.ws/htmlfiles/Polymath.html Polymath: A Renaissance Man]
 
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*"History," "Mathematics," "Polymath" and "Polyhistor" in one or more of: ''Chamber's Dictionary of Etymology'', ''The Oxford Dictionary of Word Histories'', ''The Cassell Dictionary of Word Histories''
 
  
 +
*'''[[Isaac Newton]]''' (1643–1727) was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, theologian, natural philosopher and alchemist. His treatise ''Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica,'' published in 1687, described [[law of universal gravitation|universal gravitation]] and the three [[Newton's laws of motion|laws of motion]], laying the groundwork for [[classical mechanics]], which dominated the scientific view of the physical universe for the next three centuries and is the basis for modern engineering. In a 2005 poll of the [[Royal Society]] of who had the greatest effect on the [[history of science]], Newton was deemed more influential than [[Albert Einstein]].<ref> Newton beats Einstein in polls of scientists and the public. ''Science News'', Nov 23, 2005, [http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk/news.asp?id=3880] ''The Royal Society'' accessdate 2006-10-25</ref> "When we see Newton as a late Renaissance man, his particular addiction to classical geometry as ancient wisdom and the most reliable way of unveiling the secrets of nature, seems natural."<ref>Alan Cook (2000), Review of Niccolo Guicciardini, ''Reading the Principia; The Debate on Newton's Mathematical Methods for Natural Philosophy from 1687 to 1736'', ''Notes and Records of the Royal Society of London'' 54 (1): 109–113.</ref>
  
 +
==Notes==
 +
{{reflist|2}}
  
 +
==References==
 +
*Bourbaki, Nicolas. ''Theory of Sets.'' Springer, 2004. ISBN 978-3540225256
 +
*Brand, Peter and Lino Pertile. ''The Cambridge History of Italian Literature.'' Cambridge University Press, 1999. ISBN 978-0521666220
 +
*Brown, James Robert. ''Philosophy of Mathematics: An Introduction to a World of Proofs and Pictures.'' Routledge, 1999. ISBN 978-041512275
 +
*Chorley, Richard J. and Robert P. Beckinsale. ''The History of the Study of Landforms Or the Development of Geomorphology.'' Routledge, 1991. ISBN 978-0415056267
 +
*Denlinger, Elizabeth Campbell. ''Before Victoria: Extraordinary Women of the British Romantic Era.'' Columbia University Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0231136303
 +
*Elmer, Peter, and Nicholas Webb. ''The Renaissance in Europe: An Anthology.'' Roberta Wood Yale University Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0300082227
 +
*Gettleman, Marvin E., and Stuart Schaar. ''The Middle East and Islamic World Reader.'' Grove Press,  2003. ISBN 0802139361
 +
*Goldstein, Rebecca. ''Incompleteness: The Proof and Paradox of Kurt Godel.'' W. W. Norton & Company, 2006. ISBN 978-0393327601
 +
*Heater, Derek. ''A Brief History Of Citizenship.'' New York University Press, 2004. ISBN 978-0814736715
 +
*Jehlen, Myra and Michael Warner. ''The English Literatures of America.'' Routledge, 1996. ISBN 978-0415919036
 +
*Johnston, Robert K. and J Walker Smith. ''Life Is Not Work, Work Is Not Life: Simple Reminders for Finding Balance in a 24-7 World.'' Wildcat Canyon Press, 2001. ISBN 978-1885171542
 +
*Jolley, N. ''Leibniz.'' Routledge, 2005. ISBN 978-0415283380
 +
*Kennedy, Barbara A. ''Inventing the Earth: Ideas on Landscape Development Since 1740.'' Blackwell Publishing, 2006. ISBN 978-1405101882
 +
*Marvin E. Gettleman and Stuart Schaar. ''The Middle East and Islamic World Reader.'' Grove Press, 2003. ISBN 0802139361
 +
*Moore, A. W. ''The Infinite.'' Routledge, 2001. ISBN 978-0415252850
 +
*Newsome, David. ''The Victorian World Picture.'' Rutgers University Press, 1999. ISBN 978-0813527581
 +
*O'Brien, Cormac. ''Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents: What Your Teachers Never Told You.'' Quirk Books, 2004. ISBN 1931686572
 +
*Rheingold, Howard. ''Tools for Thought: The History and Future of Mind-expanding Technology.'' MIT Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0262681155
 +
*Shand, John . ''Central Works of Philosophy, Volume 2: Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century.'' McGill-Queen's Press, 2006. ISBN 978-0773530812
 +
*Spragens, William C. ''Popular Images of American Presidents.'' Greenwood Publishing Group, 1988. ISBN 031322899X
  
 
{{credits|Polymath|210842956}}
 
{{credits|Polymath|210842956}}

Latest revision as of 00:21, 12 April 2023

Statuette of Egyptian polymath Imhotep in the Louvre

A polymath is a person with broad knowledge or learning. Renaissance Man and (less commonly) Homo Universalis are related terms to describe a person who is well educated, or who excels, in a wide variety of subjects or fields. It is based on the Humanistic view of human beings as the center of the universe, unlimited in their capacity. The ideal person, therefore, in this view is one who attains all knowledge and develops all their abilities to the greatest extent, abilities which should encompass the full spectrum of human nature.

The ideal of the polymath Renaissance Man is embodied in the Italian Leon Battista Alberti, an accomplished architect, painter, classicist, poet, mathematician, and horseman, and Leonardo da Vinci, renowned in fields as diverse as art, science, invention, music, and writing.

Today, the ever continuing growth of knowledge has led to a situation where it is next to impossible for any single person to attain a complete knowledge and the ideal is now often regarded as a person expert in one field but with a sufficiently broad base to network effectively with experts in other fields. Also, studies of intelligence have revealed that a single, unitary intelligence is not adequate to account for all human intellect. Instead, the idea of multiple intelligences has gained ground, in which there are various types of intelligence, such as linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, and so forth, with different people displaying differing levels of each type. In this view, the ideal is to develop one's own unique talents and abilities to the fullest, without needing to be an expert in all areas.

Definitions

A polymath (Greek polymathēs, πολυμαθής, "having learned much")[1] is defined as a person with encyclopedic, broad, or varied knowledge or learning.[2][3] It especially means that the person's knowledge is not restricted to one subject area. The term is used rarely enough to be included in dictionaries of obscure words.[4]

Renaissance Man (a term first recorded in written English in the early twentieth century)[5] is a related term to describe a person who is well educated, or who excels, in a wide variety of subjects or fields.[6]

This ideal developed in Renaissance Italy from the notion expressed by one of its most accomplished representatives, Leon Battista Alberti (1404–1472), that “a man can do all things if he will.” It embodied the basic tenets of Renaissance Humanism, which considered man the center of the universe, limitless in his capacities for development, and led to the notion that men should try to embrace all knowledge and develop their own capacities as fully as possible. Thus the gifted men of the Renaissance sought to develop skills in all areas of knowledge, in physical development, in social accomplishments, and in the arts.

Hildegard of Bingen, a medieval polymath, shown dictating to her scribe in an illumination from Liber Scivias

Other similar terms are Homo universalis and Uomo Universale, which in Latin and Italian, respectively, translate as "universal person" or "universal man." These expressions derived from the ideal in Renaissance Humanism that it was possible to acquire a universal learning[6] in order to develop one's potential, (covering both the arts and the sciences[7] and without necessarily restricting this learning to the academic fields). Further, the scope of learning was much narrower so gaining a command of the known accumulated knowledge was more feasible than today.

When someone is called a Renaissance Man today, it is meant that he does not just have broad interests or a superficial knowledge of several fields, but rather that his knowledge is profound, and often that he also has proficiency or accomplishments[8] in (at least some of) these fields, and in some cases even at a level comparable to the proficiency or the accomplishments of an expert.[9] The related term Generalist[6] is often used to contrast this general approach to knowledge to that of the specialist.

The term Universal Genius is also used, taking Leonardo da Vinci as a prime example, especially when a Renaissance man has made historical or lasting contributions in at least one of the fields in which he was actively involved and when he had a universality of approach. Despite the existence of this term, a polymath may not necessarily be classed as a genius; and certainly a genius may not display the breadth of knowledge to qualify as a polymath. Albert Einstein and Marie Curie are examples of people widely viewed as geniuses, but who are not generally considered as polymaths.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the words "polymath" and polyhistor mean practically the same; "the classical Latin word polyhistor was used exclusively, and the Greek word frequently, of Alexander Polyhistor," but polymathist appeared later, and then polymath. Thus today, regardless of any differentiation they may have had when originally coined, they are often taken to mean the same thing.

In Britain, phrases such as polymath sportsman, sporting polymath, or simply "polymath" are occasionally used in a restricted sense to refer to athletes that have performed at a high level in several very different sports.

Renaissance Ideal Today

The expression "Renaissance man" today commonly implies only intellectual or scholastic proficiency and knowledge and not necessarily the more universal sense of "learning" implied by the Renaissance Humanism. It is important to note, however, that some dictionaries use the term Renaissance man as roughly synonym of "polymath" in the first meaning, to describe someone versatile with many interests or talents,[10] while others recognize a meaning which is restricted to the Renaissance era and more closely related to the Renaissance ideals.

During the Renaissance, the ideal of Renaissance humanism included the acquisition of almost all available important knowledge. At that time, several universal geniuses seem to have come close to that ideal, with actual achievements in multiple fields. With the passage of time however, "universal learning" has begun to appear ever more self-contradictory. For example, a famous dispute between "Jacob Burckhardt (whose Die Kultur der Renaissance in Italien of 1860 established Alberti as the prototype of the Renaissance Man) and Julius von Schlosser (whose Die Kunstliteratur of 1924 expresses discontent with Burckhardt's assessments on several counts)" deals with the issue of whether Alberti was indeed a dilettante or an actual Universal Man; while an 1863 article about rhetoric said, for instance: "an universal genius is not likely to attain to distinction and to eminence in any thing. To achieve her best results, and to produce her most matured fruit, Genius must bend all her energies in one direction; strive for one object; keep her brain and hand upon one desired purpose and aim."[11]

Since it is considered extremely difficult to genuinely acquire an encyclopaedic knowledge, and even more to be proficient in several fields at the level of an expert, not to mention to achieve excellence or recognition in multiple fields, the word polymath may also be used, often ironically, with a potentially negative connotation as well. Under this connotation, by sacrificing depth for breadth, the polymath becomes a "jack of all trades, master of none." For many specialists, in the context of today's hyperspecialization, the ideal of a Renaissance man is judged to be an anachronism, since it is not uncommon that a specialist can barely dominate the accumulated knowledge of more than just one restricted subfield in his whole life. Many fields of interest take years of single-minded devotion to achieve expertise, often requiring starting at an early age.

In addition, today, expertise is often associated with documents, certifications, diplomas, and degrees and a person who has an abundance of these is often perceived as having more education than practical "working" experience. However, true expertise may require practical familiarity that may be inaccessible to someone who has little or no actual experience in the field or who was not born and raised in the relevant culture. In many such cases, it is realistically possible to achieve only knowledge of theory if not practical experience. For example, on a safari, a jungle native will be a more effective guide than an American scientist who may be educated in the theories of jungle survival but did not grow up acquiring his knowledge the hard way.

Today it is generally considered that the specialist's understanding of knowledge is too narrow and that a synthetic comprehension of different fields is unavailable to him. What is much more common today than the universal approach to knowledge from a single polymath is the multidisciplinary approach to knowledge, which derives from several experts in different fields working together to pool their knowledge and abilities.

Examples

Most of the historical figures considered polymaths would most likely not be so regarded today based on the level of knowledge that they possessed. Much of their knowledge was basic and purely theoretical. For example, a gentleman educated in various fields such as math, history, literature, art, and science during the eighteenth or nineteenth centuries may be only the equivalent of an average modern person with a secondary school education. In ancient times, an expert on medicine may be the equivalent of knowing basic modern first aid. In contrast to modern times, knowledge was also condensed and comprehensive information on a particular field could often be found in single volumes or texts.

Caution is necessary when interpreting the word "polymath" since there is always ambiguity regarding what the word denotes. Nevertheless, there are a number of scholars who are recognized as polymaths and/or Renaissance men; some examples follow.

Recognized polymaths

Late statue of Leon Battista Alberti. Courtyard of the Uffizi Gallery, Florence.

The following people have been described as "polymaths" by several sources—fulfilling the primary definition of the term—although there may not be expert consensus that each is a prime example in the secondary meaning, as "renaissance men" and "universal geniuses."

  • Al-Kindi (Alkindus) (801–873), an Arab astronomer, geographer, mathematician, meteorologist, musician, philosopher, physician, physicist, scientist, and politician; "he (Al-Kindî) was an omnivorous polymath, studying everything, writing 265 treatises about everything—arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, meteorology, geography, physics, politics, music, medicine, philosophy."[15]
  • Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834), poet, critic, and philosopher; "Coleridge was unquestionably a polymath, with a universal knowledge unequalled by any thinker of his day."[18]
  • Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790), a leading author, political theorist, politician, printer, scientist, inventor, civic activist, and diplomat. "The ultimate creole intellectual…. A true polymath of the Enlightenment style, he distinguished himself on both sides of the Atlantic by researches in natural sciences as well as politics and literature."[19]
  • Geber (Jabir ibn Hayyan) (721–815), an Arab Muslim chemist, alchemist, astrologer, astronomer, engineer, pharmacist, physician, philosopher, and physicist; "Jābir was a polymath who wrote 300 books on philosophy, 1,300 books on mechanical devices and military machinery, and hundreds of books on alchemy."[20]
  • Edward Heron-Allen (1861–1943) Not only was Heron-Allen a lawyer by trade, he also wrote, lectured on and created violins, was an expert on the art of chiromancy or palmistry, having read palms and analyzed the handwriting of luminaries of the period. He wrote on musical, literary and scientific subjects ranging from foraminifera, marine zoology, meteorology, as a Persian scholar translated Classics such as the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam and The Lament of Baba Tahir, also wrote on local geographic history, archeology, Buddhist philosophy, the cultivation, gourmet appreciation of and culture of the asparagus, as well as a number of novels and short stories of science fiction and horror written under his pseudonymn of "Christopher Blayre." "Heron-Allen is better described as a polymath…"[21]
  • Imhotep (fl. 2650–2611 B.C.E.), Egyptian chancellor, physician, and architect; "Imhotep, circa 2650 B.C.E. (who was revered as being at least semi-divine until the Late Period, although some of this reverence may be due to his status as physician and all-round polymath)."[22]
  • Mikhail Lomonosov (1711–1765), "Lomonosov was a true polymath—physicist, chemist, natural scientist, poet and linguist…."[23]
  • Shen Kuo (1031–1095), a Chinese scientist, statesman, mathematician, astronomer, meteorologist, geologist, zoologist, botanist, pharmacologist, agronomist, ethnographer, encyclopedist, poet, general, diplomat, hydraulic engineer, inventor, academy chancellor, finance minister, and inspector; "Chinese polymath and astronomer who studied medicine, but became renown for his engineering ability."[24]
  • Herbert Simon (1916-2001), "Simon is a very distinguished polymath, famous for work in psychology and computer science, philosophy of science, a leader in artificial intelligence, and a Nobel Prize winner in Economics."[25]
  • Mary Somerville (1780–1872), "Somerville was the most celebrated woman scientist of her time. A polymath, she wrote on astronomy, mathematics, physics, chemistry, mineralogy, and geology, among other subjects." "Somerville was the most celebrated woman scientist of her time. A polymath, she wrote on astronomy, mathematics, physics, chemistry, mineralogy, and geology, among other subjects…" [26]
  • Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941), an Indian Bengali polymath; "He was a polymath: a poet, fiction writer, dramatist, painter, educator, political thinker, philosopher of science."[27]
  • John von Neumann (1903–1957), physicist, mathematician, game theorist, economist, and pioneering computer scientist. "It isn't often that the human race produces a polymath like von Neumann, then sets him to work in the middle of the biggest crisis in human history…"[28] "Other luminaries would follow Einstein to New Jersey, including the dazzling Hungarian polymath, John von Neumann…"[29]
  • H. G. Wells (1866–1946); "Fifty years ago, the British polymath and amateur historian was able to compress the history of the world up to 1920 into one volume…"[30]
  • Thomas Young (1773–1829), British polymath, scientist, and Egyptologist, after whom Young's modulus, Young's double-slit experiment, the Young-Laplace equation and the Young-Dupré equation were named. He also studied vision and coined the term Indo-European languages.

Renaissance Men

Leonardo da Vinci is regarded in many Western cultures as the archetypal "Renaissance Man".

The following people represent prime examples of "Renaissance Men" and "universal geniuses," so to say "polymaths" in the strictest interpretation of the secondary meaning of the word. The list also includes some of the Hakeem of the Islamic Golden Age (also known as the "Islamic Renaissance"), who are considered equivalent to the Renaissance Men of the European Renaissance era.

  • Al-Farabi (Alfarabi) (870–950/951), a Turkic[31] or Persian[32] Muslim who was known as The second teacher because he had great influence on science and philosophy for several centuries, and was widely regarded to be second only to Aristotle in knowledge in his time. Farabi made notable contributions to the fields of mathematics, philosophy, medicine and music. As a philosopher and Neo-Platonist, he wrote rich commentary on Aristotle's work. He is also credited for categorizing logic into two separate groups, the first being "idea" and the second being "proof." Farabi wrote books on sociology and a notable book on music titled Kitab al-Musiqa (The Book of Music). He played and invented a varied number of musical instruments and his pure Arabian tone system is still used in Arabic music.[33]
  • Ibn Rushd (Averroes) (1126–1198), an Andalusian Arab philosopher, doctor, physician, jurist, lawyer, astronomer, mathematician, and theologan; "Ibn-Rushd, a polymath also known as Averroes;"[34] "Doctor, Philosopher, Renaissance Man."[35]
  • Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī (973–1048), a Persian scientist, physicist, anthropologist, astronomer, astrologer, encyclopedist, geodesist, geographer, geologist, historian, mathematician, natural historian, pharmacist, physician, philosopher, scholar, teacher, Ash'ari theologian, and traveler; "al-Biruni was a polymath and traveler (to India), making contributions in mathematics, geography and geology, natural history, calendars and astronomy;"[36] "al-Biruni, a scholar in many disciplines - from linguistics to mineralogy - and perhaps medieval Uzbekistan's most universal genius."[37]
  • Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543); among the great polymaths of the Renaissance, Copernicus was a mathematician, astronomer, physician, classical scholar, translator, Catholic cleric, jurist, governor, military leader, diplomat and economist. Amid his extensive responsibilities, astronomy figured as little more than an avocation—yet it was in that field that he made his mark upon the world.
  • Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519)"The following selection… shows why this famous Renaissance polymath considered painting to be a science…"[38] "In Leonardo Da Vinci, of course, he had as his subject not just an ordinary Italian painter, but the prototype of the universal genius, the 'Renaissance man,' …"; "prodigious polymath…. Painter, sculptor, engineer, astronomer, anatomist, biologist, geologist, physicist, architect, philosopher, actor, singer, musician, humanist."[39]
  • Galileo Galilei (1564–1642), "Italian scientist, physicist, and philosopher. Galileo was a true Renaissance man, excelling at many different endeavors, including lute playing and painting."[40]
  • Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) "Germany's greatest man of letters—poet, critic, playwright, and novelist—and the last true polymath to walk the earth"[41] "Goethe comes as close to deserving the title of a universal genius as any man who has ever lived."[42] "He was essentially the last great European Renaissance man."[43] His gifts included incalculable contributions to the areas of German literature and the natural sciences. He is credited with discovery of a bone in the human jaw, and proposed a theory of colors. He has a mineral named in his honor, goethite. He molded the aesthetic properties of the Alps to poetry, thus, changing the local belief from "perfectly hideous" and an "unavoidable misery," to grandeur of the finest most brilliant creation.
  • Ibn al-Haytham (Alhacen) (965–1039), an Iraqi Arab scientist, physicist, anatomist, physician, psychologist, astronomer, engineer, mathematician, ophthalmologist, philosopher, and Ash'ari theologian; "a devout, brilliant polymath;"[44] "a great man and a universal genius, long neglected even by his own people;"[45] "Ibn al-Haytham provides us with the historical personage of a versatile universal genius."[46]
  • Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406), an Arab social scientist, sociologist, historian, historiographer, philosopher of history, demographer, economist, linguist, philosopher, political theorist, military theorist, Islamic scholar, Ash'ari theologian, diplomat and statesman; "a still-influential polymath;"[47] "in any epoch ibn Khaldun (1332-1406) would deserve the accolade Renaissance man, a person of many talents and diverse interests."[48]
  • Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), some sources describe him as "polymath and President," putting "polymath" first,[49] he is also described as "the walking, talking embodiment of the Enlightenment, a polymath whose list of achievements is as long as it is incredibly varied."[50] John F. Kennedy famously commented, addressing a group of Nobel laureates, that it was "the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House—- with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone."[51]
  • Gottfried Leibniz (1646–1716); "Leibniz was a polymath who made significant contributions in many areas of physics, logic, history, librarianship, and of course philosophy and theology, while also working on ideal languages, mechanical clocks, mining machinery…"[52] "A universal genius if ever there was one, and an inexhaustible source of original and fertile ideas, Leibniz was all the more interested in logic because it …"[53] "Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz was maybe the last Universal Genius incessantly active in the fields of theology, philosophy, mathematics, physics, ...."[53] "Leibniz was perhaps the last great Renaissance man who in Bacon's words took all knowledge to be his province."[54]
  • Isaac Newton (1643–1727) was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, theologian, natural philosopher and alchemist. His treatise Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, published in 1687, described universal gravitation and the three laws of motion, laying the groundwork for classical mechanics, which dominated the scientific view of the physical universe for the next three centuries and is the basis for modern engineering. In a 2005 poll of the Royal Society of who had the greatest effect on the history of science, Newton was deemed more influential than Albert Einstein.[55] "When we see Newton as a late Renaissance man, his particular addiction to classical geometry as ancient wisdom and the most reliable way of unveiling the secrets of nature, seems natural."[56]

Notes

  1. ↑ Daniel Harper, Polymath Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  2. ↑ Polymath Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  3. ↑ Polymath Oxford Concise Dictionary Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  4. ↑ Polymath Luciferous Logolepsy Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  5. ↑ Daniel Harper, Renaissance Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Renaissance man (definition) Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  7. ↑ Renaissance man The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  8. ↑ Renaissance man (definition) Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  9. ↑ Renaissance man Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  10. ↑ Renaissance man Oxford Concise Dictionary Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  11. ↑ Universalist Quarterly and General Review Volume XX (Boston, MA: Thomkins & Co., 1863) Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  12. ↑ Hiram Woodward, (2004). Review of Indian esoteric Buddhism: A social history of the Tantric movement by Ronald M. Davidson, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 35: 329–354
  13. ↑ Irfan Habib, "Akbar and Technology," Social Scientist 20 (9-10)(1992) : 3-15 [3-4].
  14. ↑ Peter Brand and Lino Pertile. 1999. The Cambridge History of Italian Literature. (Cambridge University Press.) "Leon Battista Alberti), more versatile than Bruni, is often considered the archetype of the Renaissance polymath." p. 138 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  15. ↑ Will Durant, Innovations in Islamic Sciences, Foundation for Science Technology and Civilisation.
  16. ↑ "He was a remarkable polymath. He made major contributions to logic, metaphysics, the natural sciences (above all biology), psychology, ethics, literary criticism.."); A. W. Moore. The Infinite. (Routledge. 2001) p. 34 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  17. ↑ Derek Heater. 2004. A Brief History Of Citizenship. (New York University Press), "Aristotle was an extraordinary polymath, although only two of his great range of works, which were probably in origin lectures, interest us here." p. 16 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  18. ↑ David Newsome. 1999. The Victorian World Picture. (Cambridge University Press) p. 259 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  19. ↑ Myra Jehlen and Michael Warner. 1997. The English Literatures of America. (Routledge) 0415908736&id=iveyYA_jI_sC&pg=PA667&lpg=PA667&sig=IeaSfLkF5kYFdkv3j9Fm7dRiAXA p. 667 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  20. ↑ Bio-Bibliographies, United States National Library of Medicine. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  21. ↑ R.B. Russell, Tartarus Press.
  22. ↑ The Egyptian Building Mania, Acta Divrna Vol. III, IV (January, 2004). Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  23. ↑ Richard J. Chorley and Robert P Beckinsale. The History of the Study of Landforms Or the Development of Geomorphology. (Routledge, 1991): "Lomonosov was a true polymath—physicist, chemist, natural scientist, poet and linguist…."p. 169 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  24. ↑ Shen Kua, Science and Its Times. (Thomson Gale). Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  25. ↑ James Robert Brown. 1999. Philosophy of Mathematics: An Introduction to a World of Proofs and Pictures. (Routledge), p. 51 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  26. ↑ Elizabeth Campbell Denlinger. 2005. Before Victoria: extraordinary women of the British Romantic era. (Columbia University Press): p. 135 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  27. ↑ Rabindranath Tagore, TIME 100. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  28. ↑ Howard Rheingold. Tools for Thought: the history and future of mind-expanding technology. (MIT Press, 2000), p. 66 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  29. ↑ Rebecca Goldstein. 2005. Incompleteness: The Proof and Paradox of Kurt Godel. (new York: W. W. Norton & Company), p. 19 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  30. ↑ Alden Whitman, (1972): "A World History by 42 Professors," The New York Times, July 18, 1972, 23: "Fifty years ago, the British polymath and amateur historian was able to compress the history of the world up to 1920 into one volume of 1171 pages weighing 3 pounds 3 ounces…. Now a somewhat similar book, concededly inspired by Wells, has been published. It is the work not of one man, but of 42."
  31. ↑ Encyclopædia Britannica Article on al-Farabi Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  32. ↑ Philosophers: al-Fārābi Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  33. ↑ Abu Al-Nasr Al-Farabi: The Second Teacher Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  34. ↑ Top 100 Events of the Millennium, Life magazine. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  35. ↑ Caroline Stone, "Doctor, Philosopher, Renaissance Man," Saudi Aramco World (May-June 2003): 8–15.
  36. ↑ Paul Murdin (2000). "al-Biruni, Abu Raihan (973–1048)," Encyclopedia of Astronomy and Astrophysics. (Bristol: Institute of Physics Publishing.
  37. ↑ Koïchiro Matsuura. United Nations: Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  38. ↑ Peter Elmer and Nicholas Webb. The Renaissance in Europe: An Anthology. Roberta Wood (Yale University Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0300082227) p. 180 Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  39. ↑ Robert K. Johnston and J. Walker Smith. Life Is Not Work, Work Is Not Life: Simple Reminders for Finding Balance in a 24-7 World. (Council Oak Books, 2003. p. 1 Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  40. ↑ Eric W. Weisstein, Galileo Galilei (1564–1642)scienceworld.wolfram.com. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  41. ↑ George Eliot Middlemarch, ed. Gregory Maertz (original 1871) 2004 (Broadview Press) Note by editor of 2004 edition, Gregory Maertz, p. 710 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  42. ↑ Lillian Herlands Hornstein, G. D. Percy, and Calvin S. Brown (Eds) The Reader's Companion to World Literature (Signet Classics, 2002 ISBN 978-0451528414) Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  43. ↑ Andrea Schulte-Peevers, Sarah Johnstone, Etain O'Carroll, Jeanne Oliver, Tom Parkinson, and Nicola Williams Lonely Planet Germany (Lonely Planet Publications, 2004 ISBN 978-1740594714) Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  44. ↑ Review of Ibn al-Haytham: First Scientist, Kirkus Reviews, December 1, 2006.
  45. ↑ Sami Hamarneh (March 1972). Review of Hakim Mohammed Said, "Ibn al-Haitham," Isis 63 (1): 118–119. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  46. ↑ Laurence Bettany, (1995). "Ibn al-Haytham: an answer to multicultural science teaching?," Physics Education 30: 247–252.
  47. ↑ Liat Radcliffe, Newsweek (cf. The Polymath by Bensalem Himmich, The Complete Review. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  48. ↑ Marvin E. Gettleman and Stuart Schaar (2003), The Middle East and Islamic World Reader. (Grove Press, ISBN 0802139361), 54.
  49. ↑ Barbara A. Kennedy. 2006. Inventing the Earth: Ideas on Landscape Development Since 1740. (Blackwell Publishing) "Jefferson, Thomas). Polymath and third President of the USA."p. 132 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  50. ↑ Cormac O'Brien. Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents: What Your Teachers Never Told You. (Quirk Books, 2004. ISBN 1931686572), 15
  51. ↑ William C. Spragens. Popular Images of American Presidents. (Greenwood Publishing Group, 1988. ISBN 031322899X), 27
  52. ↑ John Shand. 2006. Central Works of Philosophy, Volume 2: Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century. (McGill-Queen's Press, ch. 3, "G. W. Leibnitz: Monadology," by Douglas Burnham; p. 61 Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  53. ↑ 53.0 53.1 Nicolas Bourbaki. Theory of Sets (Springer, 2004, ISBN 978-3540225256) Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  54. ↑ N. Jolley Leibniz (Routledge, 2005, ISBN 978-0415283380) Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  55. ↑ Newton beats Einstein in polls of scientists and the public. Science News, Nov 23, 2005, [1] The Royal Society accessdate 2006-10-25
  56. ↑ Alan Cook (2000), Review of Niccolo Guicciardini, Reading the Principia; The Debate on Newton's Mathematical Methods for Natural Philosophy from 1687 to 1736, Notes and Records of the Royal Society of London 54 (1): 109–113.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Bourbaki, Nicolas. Theory of Sets. Springer, 2004. ISBN 978-3540225256
  • Brand, Peter and Lino Pertile. The Cambridge History of Italian Literature. Cambridge University Press, 1999. ISBN 978-0521666220
  • Brown, James Robert. Philosophy of Mathematics: An Introduction to a World of Proofs and Pictures. Routledge, 1999. ISBN 978-041512275
  • Chorley, Richard J. and Robert P. Beckinsale. The History of the Study of Landforms Or the Development of Geomorphology. Routledge, 1991. ISBN 978-0415056267
  • Denlinger, Elizabeth Campbell. Before Victoria: Extraordinary Women of the British Romantic Era. Columbia University Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0231136303
  • Elmer, Peter, and Nicholas Webb. The Renaissance in Europe: An Anthology. Roberta Wood Yale University Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0300082227
  • Gettleman, Marvin E., and Stuart Schaar. The Middle East and Islamic World Reader. Grove Press, 2003. ISBN 0802139361
  • Goldstein, Rebecca. Incompleteness: The Proof and Paradox of Kurt Godel. W. W. Norton & Company, 2006. ISBN 978-0393327601
  • Heater, Derek. A Brief History Of Citizenship. New York University Press, 2004. ISBN 978-0814736715
  • Jehlen, Myra and Michael Warner. The English Literatures of America. Routledge, 1996. ISBN 978-0415919036
  • Johnston, Robert K. and J Walker Smith. Life Is Not Work, Work Is Not Life: Simple Reminders for Finding Balance in a 24-7 World. Wildcat Canyon Press, 2001. ISBN 978-1885171542
  • Jolley, N. Leibniz. Routledge, 2005. ISBN 978-0415283380
  • Kennedy, Barbara A. Inventing the Earth: Ideas on Landscape Development Since 1740. Blackwell Publishing, 2006. ISBN 978-1405101882
  • Marvin E. Gettleman and Stuart Schaar. The Middle East and Islamic World Reader. Grove Press, 2003. ISBN 0802139361
  • Moore, A. W. The Infinite. Routledge, 2001. ISBN 978-0415252850
  • Newsome, David. The Victorian World Picture. Rutgers University Press, 1999. ISBN 978-0813527581
  • O'Brien, Cormac. Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents: What Your Teachers Never Told You. Quirk Books, 2004. ISBN 1931686572
  • Rheingold, Howard. Tools for Thought: The History and Future of Mind-expanding Technology. MIT Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0262681155
  • Shand, John . Central Works of Philosophy, Volume 2: Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century. McGill-Queen's Press, 2006. ISBN 978-0773530812
  • Spragens, William C. Popular Images of American Presidents. Greenwood Publishing Group, 1988. ISBN 031322899X

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