Hypatia was born in Alexandria in the fourth century CE (there's disagreement about her age at death, so that different scholars put her year of birth at either about 370 or about 355CE). The daughter of the mathematician and philosopher, Theon, who taught at the university of Alexandria, attached to the world-famous library, and who seems to have been responsible for Hypatia's education, though she might also have been taught by Plutarch the Younger in Athens. She helped her father with his books on mathematics, astronomy, and philosophy, and became a teacher at his school, eventually becoming its head.

(The great library at Alexandria was founded by Ptolemy I at the end of the fourth century BCE. It was said to be the largest collect­ion of books in the ancient world (over half a million volumes on some accounts), and it acted as a copying centre, sending books out all over the known world. During its existence it was damaged, sometimes seriously, by fire on a number of occasions, and finally destroyed in 643ce by Caliph Omar I.)

As a teacher she was extremely well-known and respected (it's said that letters addressed simply to "The Philosopher" were delivered to her). She taught from a neo-Platonist standpoint, influenced in particular by Plotinus and the Syrian philosopher Iamblichus of Chalcis (c.250-c.230 CE), but mainly as applied to mathematics and natural philosophy. None of her works survived; we know only their titles, from which it appears that they were mainly commentaries on earlier writers. It has been said that Hypatia's main achievement was the preservation of (especially mathematical) texts which would otherwise have been lost. Most of what we know about her work and life comes from letters preserved by one of her students, Synesius of Cyrene, who went on to become the Bishop of Ptolemais, together with various later romanticised or politicised accounts of her life.

Hypatia's Alexandria was certainly turbulent. Christianity was becoming dominant, and religious riots began to be common in the 390s. Things became worse when Cyril of Alexandria became Patriarch in 412 CE. He instituted a zealous and violent assault on non-Christians and members of other Christian groups; heretical Christian sects had their churches closed and looted, and Jews were attacked on the streets and in their homes and driven out of the city. Hypatia, as a person of education, was a natural target (Christians tended to see learning as evidence of diabolism, and saw little distinction between science and magic), and in addition she was a friend of Orestes, the civil governor of Alexandria, who opposed Cyril. In 415ce, she was attacked by a Christian mob (possibly of Nitrian monks), who stripped her and horribly murdered her. Cyril was later canonised as a saint, and declared a Doctor of the Church.

Hypatia is important for a number of reasons. Apart from her rôle as a popular and charismatic teacher, and as a preserver of ancient thought, she stands as a symbol of the light of learning in a world too often dark with superstition and ignorance, and as a symbol of the ability of women even in the most unlikely places and periods of history to overcome the social and cultural barriers to their intellectual success.

One Hundred Philosophers (2004)

U.S.A.:     Barron's Educational Books

U.K.:        Apple Press

Australia: A.B.C. Books

The book covers the history of philosophy chronologically from Thales of Miletus (6th century BCE) to Peter Singer (b.1946 CE), with philosophers from Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australasia, and the U.S.A., about 60% getting a page, 40% two pages. Scattered through the book are brief introductions to such topics as African, Chinese, and Indian philosophy, scepticism, women in philosophy, mind and body, the philosophy of science, and moral philosophy. The book's divided into periods, each with its own introduction and timeline of other important events. There's also a glossary, suggested further reading, and an index.

Hypatia of Alexandria

Article by J.J. O'Connor and E.F. Robertson, for the MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive (University of St Andrews)

Hypatia of Alexandria

Wikipedia article.

Hypatia

A brief introduction, from the University of Alabama's "4,000 Years of Women in Science"

Hypatia of Alexandria

Page from Alexandria on the Web, offering three translations of biographical texts:

     The Life of Hypatia from Damascius's Life of Isidore, reproduced in The Suda; translated by Jeremiah Reedy

     The Life of Hypatia by Socrates Scholasticus, from his Ecclesiastical History

     The Life of Hypatia by John, Bishop of Nikiu, from his Chronicle 84.87-103

Hypatia of Alexandria

Introduction and links from Peter Alfeld, at the University of Utah.

Hypatia

Introduction, bibliography, and links, provided by the pages.

Hypatia of Alexandria

Assembed and maintained by Howard A. Landman; offers its own on-line texts, plus links to other resources.