Italian Mathematician and Philosopher 1718–1799

Maria Gaëtana Agnesi was born in Milan, Italy. By the time she was 5 years old, she could speak both Italian and French. Her father was a professor of mathematics in Bologna, and Agnesi enjoyed a childhood of wealth and privilege. Her father provided her with tutors, and she participated in evening seminars, speaking to the guests in languages as varied as Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and Spanish.

In her teens, Agnesi mastered mathematics. She became a prolific writer and an advocate for the education of women. After her mother died, Agnesi managed the household of eight children, and educated her brothers. Her father remarried and after her stepmother died, Maria became housekeeper for twenty siblings.

Agnesi continued studying mathematics, mostly at night, and often to the point of exhaustion. In 1748 her mathematical compendium, Instituzioni...