Bernt Michael Holmboe (23 March 1795 – 28 March 1850) was a
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
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 ...
. He was home-tutored from an early age, and was not enrolled in school until 1810. Following a short period at the Royal Frederick University, which included a stint as assistant to
Christopher Hansteen
Christopher Hansteen (26 September 1784 – 11 April 1873) was a Norwegian geophysicist, astronomer and physicist, best known for his mapping of Earth's magnetic field.
Early life and career
Hansteen was born in Christiania as the son of ...
, Holmboe was hired as a mathematics teacher at the Christiania Cathedral School in 1818, where he met the future renowned mathematician Niels Henrik Abel. Holmboe's lasting impact on
mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
worldwide has been said to be his tutoring of Abel, both in school and privately. The two became friends and remained so until Abel's early death. Holmboe moved to the Royal Frederick University in 1826, where he worked until his own death in 1850.
Holmboe's significant impact on mathematics in the fledgling Norway was his textbook in two volumes for secondary schools. It was widely used, but faced competition from Christopher Hansteen's alternative offering, sparking what may have been Norway's first debate about school textbooks.
Early life and career
Bernt Michael Holmboe was born in Vang in 1795, the son of
vicar
A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...
Jens Holmboe (1746–1823) and his wife Cathrine Holst (1763–1823). He grew up in
Eidsberg
Eidsberg was a municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality was the town of Mysen. In 2020, Eidsberg was absorbed into the Indre Østfold municipality.
Eidsberg was established as a municipality on ...
with his nine siblings, and was the elder brother of noted philologist
Christopher Andreas Holmboe
Christopher Andreas Holmboe (19 March 1796– 2 April 1882) was a Norwegian philologist, orientalist and numismatist.
Holmboe was born at Vang in Oppland, Norway. He was son of parish priest Jens Holmboe and brother of mathematician Bernt Mic ...
. Holmboe was homeschooled from an early age, but was sent to the Christiania Cathedral School in 1810 to complete his secondary education. There he undertook extracurricular studies in
mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
since 1397, but had come under Swedish control in the January 1814
Treaty of Kiel
The Treaty of Kiel ( da, Kieltraktaten) or Peace of Kiel ( Swedish and no, Kielfreden or ') was concluded between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Kingdom of Sweden on one side and the Kingdoms of Denmark and Norway on t ...
. Following Norway's declaration of independence in the Constitution of 17 May, Sweden responded by waging a military campaign against Norway during the summer of 1814. Holmboe was a spokesperson for the student group opposed to the presence of Swedish troops in the country. Any outspokenness from the student community was highly visible at the time, as the university had only seventeen students as of 1813, its year of establishment.
As well as his private studies, Holmboe attended lectures given by Søren Rasmusen. In 1815 he was appointed to the position of scientific assistant under
Christopher Hansteen
Christopher Hansteen (26 September 1784 – 11 April 1873) was a Norwegian geophysicist, astronomer and physicist, best known for his mapping of Earth's magnetic field.
Early life and career
Hansteen was born in Christiania as the son of ...
, a lecturer at the university, and delivered some lectures himself. In early 1818, Holmboe became a mathematics teacher at the Christiania Cathedral School, a position that had become vacant in 1817. The school principal, Jacob Rosted, had invited Holmboe's brother, Christopher Andreas, who had also studied mathematics, to take up the position, but he had decided instead to concentrate on philology; Christopher went on to research the
Sanskrit language
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
among others. In his teaching, Holmboe drew inspiration from
Joseph-Louis Lagrange
Joseph-Louis Lagrange (born Giuseppe Luigi LagrangiaNiels Henrik Abel, then a pupil there. Holmboe quickly discovered Abel's talent, and proclaimed him as a "splendid genius" in his report card.Quote: In English: "A splendid mathematical genius." (remark written by Holmboe) The school's primary focus was on classical education and
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
, and so Holmboe tutored Abel privately. His personal support for Abel has been called " olmboe'smost important contribution to mathematics".Quote: In English: "... the way Holmboe supported and helped Abel should be considered his most important contribution to mathematics." (statement of the article writer)
Holmboe and Abel became close friends. Two of Holmboe's younger brothers studied with Abel, and the three were also on friendly terms. Abel was invited to the Holmboe family residence in Eidsberg on several occasions, including to celebrate Christmas.
Abel died from
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...
in 1829, at the age of twenty-six. Ten years after Abel's death Holmboe edited and published his complete works in two volumes—''Oeuvres complètes de N.H. Abel'' ('Complete Works of N.H. Abel'). He was the first to do so.
Later life and career
Holmboe published his first textbook in mathematics in 1825. The 274-page book was named ''Lærebog i Mathematiken. Første Deel'' (''Textbook in Mathematics. Part One''). In 1827 he followed with the second volume, ''Lærebog i Mathematiken. Anden Deel'' (''Textbook in Mathematics. Part Two''), consisting of a further 155 pages. He used his own teaching experience as the background for his writing; mainly abstract, the purpose of the books was to instill
logical
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premises ...
thinking. For instance, in the field
geometry
Geometry (; ) is, with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. It is concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. A mathematician who works in the field of geometry is c ...
, it enticed readers to envisage a figure instead of putting it to paper. The books became widely used, and were reprinted in four and five volumes respectively.
In 1826, Holmboe was appointed a lecturer at the Royal Frederick University. Some claimed that he owed his appointment to Abel's absence, as the latter was travelling around in Europe at that time. Holmboe also taught mathematics at a military college, from 1826 until his death, and was promoted to professor at the Royal Frederick University in 1834. His later publications include ''Stereometrie'' (''Stereometry'') (1833), ''Plan- og sfærisk Trigonometrie'' (''Plan and Spherical Trigonometry'') (1834), and ''Lærebog i den høiere Mathematik'' (''Textbook of Advanced Mathematics'') (1849). Holmboe was an influence on other mathematicians as well as Abel, including Ole Jacob Broch (born 1818).
At the university, Holmboe again met Christopher Hansteen, who had become a professor there in 1816. In 1835, Hansteen published his own mathematics textbook for secondary schools. A reaction to Holmboe's books and method of teaching, it was more practically oriented. Holmboe wrote a review of the book for the newspaper ''
Morgenbladet
''Morgenbladet'' is a Norwegian weekly, newspaper, covering politics, culture and science.
History
''Morgenbladet'' was founded in 1819 by the book printer Niels Wulfsberg. The paper is the country's first daily newspaper; however, Adresseavi ...
'', in which he advised schools not to use it. A public debate followed, with contributions from other mathematicians. It has been claimed that this was the first debate on the subject of school textbooks in Norway. Hansteen's textbook was not reprinted.
Holmboe also became involved in the field of
insurance
Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...
. From 1832 to 1848 he was a member of ''Tilsynskomiteen for private forsørgelses- og understøttelsesselskaper'', the country's first public committee for the supervision of insurance companies. On the other side of the table, from 1847 Holmboe was a member of the
board of directors
A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit orga ...
of the insurance company
Gjensidige
Gjensidige Forsikring ASA is a Norwegian insurance company. The company traces its roots back to 1816 when a fire mutual was founded as ''Land Gjensidige Brandkasse'' in what is today Innlandet county. Gjensidige demutualised and listed on the ...
, founded by his former student Ole Jacob Broch.
Legacy
A Bernt Michael Holmboe Memorial Prize for teachers of mathematics was established in 2005, and is awarded annually. The prize money, NOK 50,000, are provided by the Abel Foundation, which awards the
Abel Prize
The Abel Prize ( ; no, Abelprisen ) is awarded annually by the King of Norway to one or more outstanding mathematicians. It is named after the Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel (1802–1829) and directly modeled after the Nobel Pri ...
. The prize is administered by the board of the
Norwegian Mathematical Society
The Norwegian Mathematical Society ( no, Norsk matematisk forening, NMF) is a professional society for mathematicians. It was formed in 1918, with Carl Størmer elected as its first president.
It organizes mathematical contests and the annual Abe ...
. The current board chairman is Tom Lindstrøm, professor at the University of Oslo.
A street at Majorstuen in Oslo, ''Holmboes gate'', has been named after Bernt Michael Holmboe. Before 1879 it was named ''Hansteens gate'', after Christopher Hansteen.
Marriage and children
Holmboe married twice. His first wife, Nikoline Antonie Finkenhagen, born 1804 in
Toten
Toten is a traditional district in Innlandet county in the eastern part of Norway. It consists of the municipalities Østre Toten and Vestre Toten.
The combined population of Toten is approximately 27,000. The largest town is Raufoss with appro ...
, died in 1839 after five years of marriage. They had three daughters, two of whom (Fredrikke and Nikoline, Jr.) reached adulthood, and one stillborn son. He married his second wife, Ingeborg Thorp in 1842. She was born in 1812 in
Voss
Voss () is a municipality and a traditional district in Vestland county, Norway. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Vossevangen. Other villages include Bolstadøyri, Borstrondi, Evanger, Kvitheim, Mjølfjell, ...
. This marriage produced two sons, Christopher and Jens, and two daughters, Cathrine and Olava. Only Jens and Cathrine reached adulthood.Genealogical entry for Bernt Michael Holmboe – published by ''Fogd Jens Holmboes legat''. Retrieved on 9 November 2008.
Bernt Michael Holmboe died in 1850, and his second wife outlived him by thirty-three years.