Robert Recorde and the Low Status of Mathematics in the 16th Century

When Apologizing for Math Was the Norm

“Sorry, this is going to involve some math.” We say this when we don’t want to overwhelm someone with something complicated. But it turns out that 500 years ago, mathematicians had to apologize for mathematics even inside mathematics textbooks.

Robert Recorde and the First English Mathematics Textbook

In 1543, Welsh mathematician Robert Recorde — the inventor of the “=” sign — wrote the first English-language mathematics textbook, The Ground of Artes. In the preface, he openly acknowledges that mathematics is regarded as “contemptible and vile.”

This admission was not Recorde’s personal opinion. At the time, mathematics was genuinely considered the domain of shopkeepers, bookkeepers, and moneylenders — not of the educated class. In Italy, as far back as the 13th century, mathematics was taught primarily to the children of merchants. Its earliest applications — calculating compound interest, rental costs, currency conversion — belonged entirely to the commercial world.

How Robert Recorde Defended the Reputation of Mathematics

That is why mathematicians like Robert Recorde spent decades trying to rehabilitate the image of their discipline. In his defense, Recorde turned to the Bible — God commanded us to measure, count, and bring order to the world: Wisdom 11:21, “…but thou hast arranged all things by measure, number, and weight” — and pointed to practical applications in navigation, architecture, and medicine.

Mathematics Today: High Status, Same Old Apologies

Today the situation is more or less reversed: mathematics is a “high” science. And yet the apologies for math have never gone away.