Math History Timeline

Could Leibniz have argued with Newton? A zoomable, editable timeline of major mathematical discoveries.

Could Gauss have worked with Euler? Could Leibniz have argued with Newton?

This timeline answers questions like that at a glance. It covers major mathematical discoveries from Babylon to the twentieth century, with lifespan bars above the axis showing who overlapped with whom.

Notice how the discoveries speed up as time goes on. That is why the axis is drawn to a linear scale. You can zoom in and pan along it to open up the crowded parts.

✍🏼The script is made to be edited. Anyone can add their own event (a year and a description in the DATA block) or a person (a name and two years in the LIFESPANS OF MATHEMATICIANS block).

This version contains only the most important discoveries and the best-known figures. For some of them the dates are not historically certain, but they are close enough to give the right picture.

No toolboxes required. Export to vector PDF or SVG is included.