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Philolaus

File:Pythagoras_and_Philolaus.png · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Also known as Philolaus of Croton

Philolaus (; , Philólaos; ) was a Greek Pythagorean and pre-Socratic philosopher. He was born in a Greek colony in Italy and migrated to Greece. Philolaus has been called one of three most prominent figures in the Pythagorean tradition and the most outstanding figure in the Pythagorean school. Pythagoras developed a school of philosophy that was dominated by both mathematics and mysticism. Most of what is known today about the Pythagorean astronomical system is derived from Philolaus's views. He may have been the first to write about Pythagorean doctrine. According to , who cites Nicomachus, P

OverviewAI-generated

Philolaus of Croton was a male philosopher, astronomer, mathematician, and politician who lived from 470 BCE to 390 BCE. He was a citizen of Crotone and wrote in Ancient Greek. His name in his native language is Φιλόλαος. He was a student of Pythagoras and is associated with the Pythagoreanism movement.

He had students including Archytas, Xenophilus, Echecrates of Phlius, and Cebes. Philolaus died in Thebes. His work has been described by sources such as the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, the Encyclopædia Britannica 11th edition, and Pauly–Wissowa. Open Library lists him as the author of four works, including titles such as *Pythagore et la philosophie pythagoricienne* and *Philolaus of Croton*.

Synthesized by Vinony from 21 facts across 3 sources: Wikidata, Open Library, Last.fm. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Person · Open Library

Born
ca. 470
Works
4

Top works

  • Pythagore et la philosophie pythagoricienne
  • Pythagore et la Philosophie Pythagoricienne
  • Philolaus of Croton
  • Pythagore et la philosophie pythagoricienne: contenant les fragments de ...

via Open Library + Wikidata

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners
1
Total plays
18

<a href="https://www.last.fm/music/Philolaus">Read more on Last.fm</a>

via Last.fm · Philolaus

Key facts

Philosopher.name
Philolaus
Philosopher.image
Pythagoras and Philolaus.png
Philosopher.caption
Medieval woodcut by Franchino Gaffurio, depicting Pythagoras and Philolaus conducting musical investigations
Philosopher.birth_date
470 BC
Philosopher.death_date
385 BC
Philosopher.era
Pre-Socratic philosophy
Philosopher.region
Western philosophy
Philosopher.school_tradition
Pythagoreanism

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Instance of
human
Gender
male
Citizenship
Crotone
Place of birth
Taras
Place of death
Thebes
Occupation
writer
Languages spoken
Ancient Greek
Doctoral advisor
Pythagoras
Student of
Pythagoras
Field of work
philosophy
Image
Pythagoras and Philolaus.png
Show 6 more facts
date of birth
0470-01-01
date of death
0390-01-01
Commons category
Philolaus
name in native language
Φιλόλαος
writing language
Ancient Greek
maintained by WikiProject
WikiProject Mathematics
Sources (4)

via Wikidata · CC0

~8 min read

Encyclopedic overview

8 sections
Contents
  • Biography
  • Writings
  • Philosophy
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References
  • Other sources
  • External links

Philolaus (; , Philólaos; ) was a Greek Pythagorean and pre-Socratic philosopher. He was born in a Greek colony in Italy and migrated to Greece. Philolaus has been called one of three most prominent figures in the Pythagorean tradition and the most outstanding figure in the Pythagorean school. Pythagoras developed a school of philosophy that was dominated by both mathematics and mysticism. Most of what is known today about the Pythagorean astronomical system is derived from Philolaus's views. He may have been the first to write about Pythagorean doctrine. According to , who cites Nicomachus, Philolaus was the successor of Pythagoras.

He argued that at the foundation of everything is the part played by the limiting and limitless, which combine in a harmony. With his assertions that the Earth was not the center of the universe (geocentrism), he is credited with the earliest known discussion of concepts in the development of heliocentrism, the theory that the Earth is not the center of the Universe, but rather that the Sun is. Philolaus discussed a Central Fire as the center of the universe and that spheres (including the Sun) revolved around it.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Philolaus” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (7)