thumb|simon stevin simon stevin (bruges, 1548 â the hague or leiden 1620) was a flemish mathematician, physicist and military engineer. he was active in a great many areas of science and engineering, both theoretical and practical. he also translated various mathematical terms into dutch, making it one of the few european languages in which the word for mathematics, wiskunde (wis + kunde i.e. "the art of what is certain"), was not a loanword from greek but was a calque via latin. == biography == very little is known with certainty about stevin's life and what we know is mostly inferred from other recorded facts.dijksterhuis, e. j.: simon stevin, martinus nijhoff, 's-gravenhage, 1943 (in dutch) the exact birth date and the date and place of his death are uncertain. it is assumed he was born in bruges since he enrolled at university of leiden under the name simon stevinius brugensis (= simon stevin from bruges). his name is usually written as stevin, but some documents regarding his father use the spelling stevijn (pronunciation sti:vaÉªn ). this a normal spelling shift in 16th century dutch.(nl)g. van de bergh het tijdschrift de vlaamse stam, jaargang 34, pag. 323-328 and (nl)bibliography to the van den bergh article in de vlaamse stam he was born around the year 1548 to unmarried parents, anthonis (anton) stevin and catelyne van der poort. his father is believed to have been a cadet son of a mayor of veurne and a member of the schuttersgilde (city militia) sint-barbara of bruges. while simon's father was not mentioned in the book of burghers, the fact that he was a member of the militia allows a safe assumption that he was. many other stevins were later mentioned in the poorterboeken (burgher registry books). simon stevin's mother cathelijne (or catelyne) was the daughter of a wealthy family from ypres. her father hubert was a poorter of bruges. simon's mother cathelijne later married joost sayon who was involved in the carpet and silk trade and a member of the schuttersgilde sint-sebastiaan. through her marriage cathelijne became a member of a family of calvinists and simon was likely brought up in the calvinist faith. it is believed that stevin grew up in a relatively affluent environment and enjoyed a good education. he was likely educated at a latin school in his hometown.the wonderful world of simon stevin: 'magic is no magic', j. t. devreese, g. vanden berghe, wit press, 1st ed., 2008 === simon stevin's travels === stevin left bruges in 1571 apparently without a particular destination. stevin was most li
1540s_births 1620_deaths 16th-century_Belgian_people Belgian_mathematicians Civil_engineers Clerks Flemish_engineers Flemish_scientists History_of_the_Netherlands People_from_Bruges People_of_the_Dutch_Golden_Age