Medieval Europe’s satanic ciphers: on the genesis of a modern myth
The purpose of this article is to investigate the genesis and growth of a historical canard that can be encountered in numerous popular as well as some scholarly publications devoted to the history of mathematics. According to one of the core elements of this story, the number or symbol for zero was...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor and Francis
2020
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| _version_ | 1797075337813688320 |
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| author | Nothaft, CPE |
| author_facet | Nothaft, CPE |
| author_sort | Nothaft, CPE |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | The purpose of this article is to investigate the genesis and growth of a historical canard that can be encountered in numerous popular as well as some scholarly publications devoted to the history of mathematics. According to one of the core elements of this story, the number or symbol for zero was the cause of much anxiety in medieval Europe, as its unusual properties caused it to be associated with the Devil or with black magic. This anxiety is supposed to have extended to the entire system of Hindu-Arabic numerals, such that the use of these numerals was banned by the Church or by other powerful institutions. I shall argue that this narrative is false or unsubstantiated at nearly every level of analysis. Some elements arose from an unwarranted interpretation of medieval sources, while others are based on the unbridled imagination of certain modern authors. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-06T23:49:01Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:71f4c8ca-2b6a-4393-94dc-8d81096985bc |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-06T23:49:01Z |
| publishDate | 2020 |
| publisher | Taylor and Francis |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:71f4c8ca-2b6a-4393-94dc-8d81096985bc2022-03-26T19:47:00ZMedieval Europe’s satanic ciphers: on the genesis of a modern mythJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:71f4c8ca-2b6a-4393-94dc-8d81096985bcEnglishSymplectic Elements at OxfordTaylor and Francis2020Nothaft, CPEThe purpose of this article is to investigate the genesis and growth of a historical canard that can be encountered in numerous popular as well as some scholarly publications devoted to the history of mathematics. According to one of the core elements of this story, the number or symbol for zero was the cause of much anxiety in medieval Europe, as its unusual properties caused it to be associated with the Devil or with black magic. This anxiety is supposed to have extended to the entire system of Hindu-Arabic numerals, such that the use of these numerals was banned by the Church or by other powerful institutions. I shall argue that this narrative is false or unsubstantiated at nearly every level of analysis. Some elements arose from an unwarranted interpretation of medieval sources, while others are based on the unbridled imagination of certain modern authors. |
| spellingShingle | Nothaft, CPE Medieval Europe’s satanic ciphers: on the genesis of a modern myth |
| title | Medieval Europe’s satanic ciphers: on the genesis of a modern myth |
| title_full | Medieval Europe’s satanic ciphers: on the genesis of a modern myth |
| title_fullStr | Medieval Europe’s satanic ciphers: on the genesis of a modern myth |
| title_full_unstemmed | Medieval Europe’s satanic ciphers: on the genesis of a modern myth |
| title_short | Medieval Europe’s satanic ciphers: on the genesis of a modern myth |
| title_sort | medieval europe s satanic ciphers on the genesis of a modern myth |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nothaftcpe medievaleuropessatanicciphersonthegenesisofamodernmyth |