Iriññāttappiḷḷi Mādhavan Nampūtiri known as Mādhava of Sangamagrāma was a Hindu mathematician and astronomer

Mādhava of Sangamagrama was a Middle Ages Indian mathematician and astronomer from Thrissur District, Kerala, India. He was born in c. 1340 BC. He started a school in kerala called the Kerala school of mathematics and astronomy.

He has made significant contributions to the field of mathematics in topics like calculus, geometry, infinite series, algebra, and trigonometry. He was the first mathematician who has applied the endless series in trigonometric functions like sin, cosine, tangent.

His works have inspired may European mathematicians to contribute to the field of analysis and calculus

Madhava of Sangamagrama: Life History

List of few significant events of Madhava’s life is mentioned below:

Madhava was born in South India, and He was born in Kerala in 1340 BC. From a very young age, he was interested in education, especially in the field of mathematics.

He wrote more than ten books on mathematics covering different mathematical topics. Though most of his books are lost, the books which are found have been used by today’s mathematicians and researchers to research mathematics.

He also formed a school for those who are interested in mathematics in Kerala. He worked as an Astronomer-Mathematician till his last breath. He died in 1425 BC in Kerala.

Madhava of Sangamagrama Books

Madhava of Sangamagrama has written the following books:

1. Aganita-grahacara                        
2. Chandravakyani               
3. Golavada                         
4. Lagnaprakarana                   
5. Madhyamanayanaprakara                   
6. Mahajyanayanaprakara                    
7. Sphutacandrapti                   
8. Venvaroha 

Most of Madhava of Sangamagrama’s Mathematical works have been lost, but whatever remained changed the phase of mathematics.

Contributions of Madhava of Sangamagrama in Mathematics

Madhava of Sangamagrama has made a notable contribution to the field of Mathematics. Few of his known contributions are:

1. Madhava of Sangamagrama is considered as the founder of mathematical analysis.
2. In trigonometry, He has discovered power series expansions of arctangent, sine, and cosine function.
3. He has derived the π infinite series summation formulae.
4. He was the one who has taken the initiative in the development of calculus.
5. Madhava improved the works of great mathematicians like the works of Bhāskara II. 
6. By iteration and continued fractions, He also discovered the solutions of transcendental equations. 
7. He polynomial expansion methods.
8. He also found an infinite series of tests of convergence.
9. He explained the infinite continued fractions.
10. He created the sin table in trigonometry.
11. He also worked on to derive the value of mathematical constant Pi.
12. He evaluated the value of number series to n terms.
13. He has done a significant development in mathematics in Kerala.

Interesting facts about Madhava of Sangamagrama:

Few of the Interesting facts about Madhava of Sangamagrama:

1. Madhava is the most significant medieval India’s mathematician-astronomer.
2. He is the founder of mathematical analysis.
3. He is the founder of the most famous school called Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics. 
4. He derived the trigonometrical table.

Awards and Rewards under the name of Madhava of Sangamagrama

Most of the mathematicians and scientists of various countries have valued Madhava by facilitating him in different ways.
Here are few of the mathematicians and scientists did for him:

Madhava Mathematics Award:

• This award is given to the Undergraduate Students. This is funded by National Board of Higher Mathematics.
• This prize is given to students by the Homi Bhabha Center for Science Education, Mumbai and the Department of Mathematics, S. P College Pune.
• Attractive Medals and  Cash Prizes are given to students who does something exceptional in Mathematics.

Madhava Mathematics Academy

This Academy is started with a motto to promote mathematics to the students. This school is located in Pune, Maharashtra.

Quotes By Madhava of Sangamagrama

Here is one of the most famous quote by Madhava:

The first term is the product of the given sine and radius of the desired arc divided by the cosine of the arc. The succeeding terms are obtained by the process of iteration when the first term is repeatedly multiplied by the square of the sine and divided by the square of the cosine. All the terms are then divided by the odd numbers 1, 3, 5 … The arc is obtained by adding and subtracting, respectively, the terms of odd rank and those of even rank. It is laid down that the sine of the arc or that of its complement whichever is the smaller should be taken here as the given sine. Otherwise, the terms obtained by this above iteration will not tend to the vanishing magnitude.

Other Mathematicians like Madhava of Sangamagrama

There are many Mathematicians from India Who are like Madhava. Few of the Notable Names are Mahavira, Shakuntala Devi, Ramanujan, Aryabhata, Brahmagupta. They are the few of the op notch mathematicians of India.

FAQ about Madhava of Sangamagrama

Who founded the Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics?

Madhava of Sangamagrama and few other great Mathematicians have together founded the Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics.

Why is Madhava of Sangamagrama famous for?

Madhava of Sangamagrama is famous for finding the infinity series. He is sometimes also known as the man who knew the infinity from Kerala.

What did the Madhava of Sangamagrama do in the field of Trigonometry?

Madhava of Sangamagrama was the one who formulated the Trigonometry table for sin, tan, and cos.

Where was Madhava of Sangamagrama was born and brought up?

Madhava of Sangamagrama was born in Aloor, Irinjalakuda in Thrissur District, Kerala, India. This is in South India.

What happened to the writings of Madhava of Sangamagrama?

Madhava has written many books in Mathematics. Many of his books are lost.

When Europeans came to Sangamagrama, They came to know about Kerala school. The writings Madhava and other mathematicians of the Kerala school have been sent to Europe so that it could be helpful for European Mathematicians.

Reference

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