Elena Cornaro Piscopia
| Elena Cornaro Piscopia | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | June 5, 1646 Palazzo Loredan, Venice, Republic of Venice |
| Died | July 26, 1684 Padua |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Alma mater | University of Padua |
Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia, also Helen Cornaro (Italian: [pisˈkɔːpja]; 5 June 1646 – 26 July 1684), was an Italian philosopher of noble descent, who was the first woman to receive an academic degree from a university. She was one of the first women to receive an academic degree and in 1678 she became the first woman in the world to receive a Ph.D. degree.
Elena was considered to be an expert musician. In addition to mastering the sciblis of her time-which means she mastered almost the entire body of knowledge-Elena mastered the harpsichord, the clavichord, the harp, and the violin. Her skills were shown by the music that she composed in her lifetime.
She was a member of various academies and was esteemed throughout Europe for her attainments and virtues. In Hypatia's Heritage, Margaret Alic states that she became a mathematics lecturer at the University of Padua in 1678.
Elena Cornaro Piscopia was born in the Palazzo Loredan, at Venice, Republic of Venice on 5 June 1646. She was the third child of Giovanni Battista Cornaro-Piscopia, and his wife Zanetta Boni. Her mother was a peasant and was not married to Giovanni (by whom she had four other children) at the time of Elena’s birth. Giovanni Battista was a Procurator of St. Mark's, a high office in the Republic of Venice, which entitled him to accommodation in St Mark's Square. By the advice from Giovanni Fabris, a priest friend of the family's, she began the study of Latin and Greek under distinguished instructors, and soon became proficient in these languages at the age of seven. She also mastered Hebrew, Spanish, French and Arabic, earning the title of "Oraculum Septilingue". Her later studies included mathematics, philosophy, and theology. In 1665 she took the habit of a Benedictine Oblate without, however, becoming a nun. In 1669, she translated from Spanish into Italian Colloquio di Cristo nostro Redentore all’anima devota, a book by the Carthusian monk Giovanni Laspergio. She was invited to be a part of many scholarly societies when her fame spread and in 1670 became president of the Venetian society Accademia dei Pacifici.
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