Ernst Otto Hölder (2 April 1901,

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

– 30 June 1990,

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...

) was a German

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

who made contributions to partial differential equations and continuum mechanics.

Education and career

Hölder was born in

and studied at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...

, where he earned his PhD in 1926 with a dissertation on fluid dynamics. Afterwards, he worked as an assistant at the University of Leipzig and passed the First State Examination in 1926. In 1929 he earned his habilitation, also at the University of Leipzig, with a topic on

celestial mechanics Celestial mechanics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the motions of objects in outer space. Historically, celestial mechanics applies principles of physics (classical mechanics) to astronomical objects, such as stars and planets, to ...

. From 1929 to 1939, he worked as a privatdozent at the University of Leipzig, and from 1939 to 1945, he was a scientific member at the German Aeronautical Research Institute in

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Hölder held various academic positions at the University of Leipzig, including as an extraordinary professor, head of the Mathematical Institute, and dean of the Philosophical Faculty II. In 1958, he left Leipzig and took a position as a professor at the Mathematical Institute at the

University of Mainz The Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (german: Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz) is a public research university in Mainz, Rhineland Palatinate, Germany, named after the printer Johannes Gutenberg since 1946. With approximately 32,000 stud ...

, where he also served as co-director of the institute until his retirement in 1969.

Honors and awards

Hölder was a member of several

scientific Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

societies, including the Saxonian Academy of Sciences in Leipzig, the

German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (german: Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften), short Leopoldina, is the national academy of Germany, and is located in Halle (Saale). Founded ...

, and the East German Academy of Sciences in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

Personal life

Hölder was the eldest son of

Otto Hölder Ludwig Otto Hölder (December 22, 1859 – August 29, 1937) was a German mathematician born in Stuttgart. Early life and education Hölder was the youngest of three sons of professor Otto Hölder (1811–1890), and a grandson of professor Chris ...

, who was also a mathematician and professor at the University of Leipzig.

References

1901 births 1990 deaths 20th-century German mathematicians Members of the German Academy of Sciences at Berlin Members of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina Leipzig University alumni Academic staff of Leipzig University Academic staff of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz People from Leipzig Mathematical physicists German mathematicians {{Germany-mathematician-stub