Felix Hausdorff
| Felix Hausdorff | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
November 8, 1868 Breslau, Kingdom of Prussia |
| Died | January 26, 1942 (aged 73) Bonn, Germany |
| Nationality | German |
| Fields | Mathematics |
| Institutions | University of Bonn, University of Greifswald, University of Leipzig |
| Alma mater | University of Leipzig |
| Thesis | Zur Theorie der astronomischen Strahlenbrechung (1891) |
| Doctoral advisor |
Heinrich Bruns Adolph Mayer |
| Doctoral students |
Karl Bögel Franz Hallenbach Gustav Steinbach |
| Known for |
Hausdorff measure Hausdorff dimension Hausdorff space Hausdorff maximal principle Hausdorff distance Hausdorff paradox Hausdorff moment problem Hausdorff-Young inequality |
Felix Hausdorff (November 8, 1868 – January 26, 1942) was a German mathematician who is considered to be one of the founders of modern topology and who contributed significantly to set theory, descriptive set theory, measure theory, function theory, and functional analysis.
Life became difficult for Hausdorff and his family after Kristallnacht in 1938. The next year he initiated efforts to emigrate to the United States, but was unable to make arrangements to receive a research fellowship. On 26 January 1942, Felix Hausdorff, along with his wife and his sister-in-law, committed suicide by taking an overdose of veronal, rather than comply with German orders to move to the Endenich camp, and there suffer the likely implications, about which he held no illusions.
Hausdorff's father, the Jewish merchant Louis Hausdorff (1843–1896), moved in the autumn of 1870 with his young family to Leipzig and worked over time at various companies, including a linen-and cotton goods factory. He was an educated man and had become a Morenu at the age of 14. There are several treatises from his pen, including a long work on the Aramaic translations of the Bible from the perspective of Talmudic law.
Hausdorff's mother, Hedwig (1848–1902), who is also referred to in various documents as Johanna, came from the Jewish Tietz family. From another branch of this family came Hermann Tietz, founder of the first department store, and later co-owner of the department store chain called "Hermann Tietz". During the period of Nazi dictatorship the name was "Aryanised" to Hertie.
From 1878 to Felix Hausdorff attended the Nicolai School in Leipzig, a facility that had a reputation as a hotbed of humanistic education. He was an excellent student, class leader for many years and often recited self-written Latin or German poems at school celebrations. In his graduation in 1887 (with two Oberprimen), he was the only one who reached the highest grade.
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