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Pythagoras Timeline
(c. 570 BC - 495 BC)Pythagoras was an ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician born on the island of Samos around 570 BC. He is best known for the Pythagorean theorem, a fundamental principle in geometry relating to right-angled triangles. He founded a mystical school in Croton, southern Italy, that blended mathematics, philosophy, and religious teachings, influencing later thinkers such as Plato. His followers believed numbers were the essence of all things, shaping Western mathematical and philosophical thought for centuries. More Less
Ancient Life and Legends
Pythagorean theorem known before Pythagoras
1800 BC
The Pythagorean theorem was known and used by the Babylonians and Indians centuries before Pythagoras. Walter Burkert rejects the suggestion that Pythagoras had anything to do with it, noting that Pythagoras was never credited with having proved any theorem in antiquity.
Image source: Pythagorean theorem
Aristippus explains Pythagoras's name through Pythian Apollo
350 BC
In the fourth century BC, Aristippus of Cyrene explained Pythagoras's name by associating it with Pythian Apollo, saying, 'He spoke [agoreúō] the truth no less than did the Pythian [puthikós].'
Image source: Pythagoras
Reports that Pythagoras studied under the Jews
300 BC
By the third century BC, Pythagoras was also reported to have studied under the Jews, adding to the growing body of legendary claims about his travels and the foreign origins of his wisdom.
Antonius Diogenes claims Pythagoras learned from dreams
200 BC
Contradicting all reports of Pythagoras's travels and teachers, the novelist Antonius Diogenes, writing in the second century BC, reported that Pythagoras discovered all his doctrines himself by interpreting dreams.
Apollonius Paradoxographus links Pythagoras to Pherecydes
150 BC
Apollonius Paradoxographus, a paradoxographer who may have lived in the second century BC, identified Pythagoras's thaumaturgic ideas as a result of Pherecydes's influence.
Image source: Pherecydes of Syros
Reports of Pythagoras studying with Indian sages, Celts, and Iberians
250 AD
By the third century AD, Pythagoras was reported by Philostratus to have studied under sages or gymnosophists in India and, according to Iamblichus, also with the Celts and Iberians, expanding legends of his wanderings.
Image source: Gymnosophists
Ancient Reception
Universal acceptance of Pythagorean doctrine among Greek intellectuals
400 BC
By the end of the fifth century BC, the fact of Pythagoras's teachings and doctrines was universally accepted among Greek intellectuals, cementing his reputation as one of the foundational figures of Greek thought.
Aristotle's students write on Pythagoras
340 BC - 300 BC
In the fourth century BC, Aristotle's students Dicaearchus, Aristoxenus, and Heraclides Ponticus wrote earlier accounts of Pythagoras. Porphyry and Iamblichus later used this material, which, when it can be identified, is generally considered the most reliable.
Image source: Dicaearchus
Moderatus of Gades expands Pythagorean number philosophy
80 AD
The later first-century Neopythagorean philosopher Moderatus of Gades expanded on Pythagorean number philosophy and probably understood the soul as a 'kind of mathematical harmony'.
Apollonius of Tyana emulates Pythagoras
80 AD
The first-century AD philosopher Apollonius of Tyana sought to emulate Pythagoras and live by Pythagorean teachings, adopting his ascetic lifestyle and philosophical ideals.
Image source: Apollonius of Tyana
Key Facts
- Pythagoras was born on the Greek island of Samos around 570 BC and later traveled widely, reportedly visiting Egypt and Babylon to study mathematics and mysticism.
- He founded his famous school in Croton (southern Italy) around 530 BC, which combined mathematical study with religious and philosophical teachings.
- The Pythagorean theorem, stating that the square of the hypotenuse of a right triangle equals the sum of the squares of the other two sides, is named after him.
- His followers, known as Pythagoreans, believed that 'all is number' and discovered mathematical relationships in music, such as harmonious ratios.
- Pythagoras died around 495 BC, possibly in Metapontum, but his ideas deeply influenced later philosophers including Plato and the development of Western mathematics.
Source
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