Science · Law · 1601–1665
Born: 17 August 1601 · Died: 12 January 1665 · Age: 63
French lawyer and mathematician who pioneered number theory and probability and left behind the famous Last Theorem
Did you know?He was a lawyer by profession and treated mathematics only as a hobby, often refusing to publish his formal proofs.
Pierre de Fermat was a lawyer who became one of history's great mathematicians in his spare time. He worked as a councillor at the regional court in Toulouse. In letters to other scholars he laid foundations for number theory and analytic geometry, and early ideas of calculus. With Blaise Pascal he helped create probability theory. In the margin of a book he claimed to have a proof that was too large to fit. His "Last Theorem" resisted mathematicians for more than 350 years, until Andrew Wiles proved it in 1994.
Pierre de Fermat (French:; 17 August 1601 – 12 January 1665) was a French magistrate, polymath, and mathematician credited for early developments that led to infinitesimal calculus, including his technique of adequality.
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Profile
French mathematician, 1601–1665
Pierre de Fermat was born in Beaumont-de-Lomagne in 1601.
He was a councillor at the parlement of Toulouse.
He corresponded with Blaise Pascal in 1654.
His Last Theorem was proved by Andrew Wiles in 1994.
Career highlights
Did you know?He wrote that he had a proof too large for the margin.
Questions people ask
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