Lazarus Bendavid

Lazarus Bendavid (* October 18, 1762 in Berlin, † March 28, 1832 ) was a German - Jewish mathematician, philosopher and educator.

Biography

Bendavid was the son of David Hirsch and his wife Chava. After successful completion of the Berlin yeshiva Bendavid began to study at the University of Halle mathematics and philosophy. Later he moved to the University of Göttingen. When he worked as a private tutor there, he claimed, inter acquaintance with Georg Christoph Lichtenberg.

After completing his studies Bendavid worked as a lecturer. As such, it was the end of 1791 the University of Vienna and taught there for six years philosophy. He tried to popularize ideas of Immanuel Kant.

In 1797 he returned to Berlin. Since this time he wrote for various magazines and newspapers. On the occasion of a competition winning the Academy of Sciences in Berlin Bendavids work On the Origin of our knowledge in 1801 with the first prize. As of 1802, the Haude and Spenersche newspaper hired him as a political editor.

From 1806 he was called Bendavid director of the Jewish Free School in Berlin. He held until 1826 this office. The school this year restructuring took Bendavid an opportunity to resign his office and retire.

Works

• Attempt a logical discussion of the mathematical infinite, 1789
• Something to characterize the Jews, 1793
• Essay on the pleasure 1794
• Attempt at a theory of taste, 1799 ( digitized )
• About the origin of our knowledge, 1801
• Autobiography, 1806 ( website with the text )
• To calculate the Jewish calendar, 1817