Jul 22, 2022
Celebrating Stefan Banach
This Doodle’s Key Themes
Today’s Doodle celebrates an original member of the Lwów School of Mathematics and founder of modern functional analysis —Stefan Banach. On this day in 1922, this influential 20th-century mathematician officially became a professor
Stefan Banach was born in Kraków, Poland. He never knew his mother, and his father sent him to be raised by a family in the city. Due to his poor eyesight, Banach was deemed unfit for military service and taught in local schools during World War 1.
After publishing mathematical papers he worked on in his spare time, Banach received a job at Lvov Technical University. He was a mostly self-taught mathematician and professor. Hugo Steinhaus, a distinguished mathematician and educator met and befriended a young Banach. Steinhaus, an early founder of game and probability theory, would later refer to Banach as his “greatest scientific discovery.”
With the help of Steinhaus’ academic connections, Banach founded modern functional analysis, an entirely new branch of mathematics. Many concepts are named after him including Banach spaces, Banach algebra and the Banach-Steinhaus theorm.
He was also an original member of the famous school of mathematics in what is now present day Lviv, Ukraine. Banach influenced the school’s unique atmosphere. Faculty would meet in noisy cafés, discuss and formulate problems, and write directly on the tables.
Banach is widely regarded as one of the most influential mathematicians of the 20th century. He made major contributions to the theory of topological vector spaces, measure theory, integration, the theory of sets, orthogonal series and functional analysis, which is still studied and used today.
Thank you for your invaluable contributions to mathematics, Stefan Banach!
Where this Doodle appeared
Discover more Doodles by color
Did you know?
The very first Doodle launched as an “out of office” message of sorts when company founders Larry and Sergey went on vacation.
Learn MoreDid you know?
The first Doodle launched in 1998, before Google was officially incorporated.
Learn MoreDid you know?
The first same day Doodle was created in 2009 when water was discovered on the moon.
Learn MoreDid you know?
Doodle for Google student contest winners have gone on to become professional artists
Learn MoreDid you know?
The time it takes from sketch to launch for a Doodle varies widely: some have taken years and others just a few hours!
Learn MoreDid you know?
Hundreds of Doodles launch around the world every year. Often, several different ones are live in different places at the same time!
Learn MoreDid you know?
Our most frequently recurring Doodle character is Momo the Cat - named after a real-life team pet!
Learn More