Caspar Neumann
Encyclopedia
Caspar Neumann (14 September 1648 – 27 January 1715) was a German
professor and clergyman from Breslau with a special interest in mortality rates.
, and married the daughter of J. J. Rabe, physician in ordinary to the prince of Saxe-Friedenstein. In 1678 he became the deacon of St. Maria-Magdalen in Breslau. In 1680 he published his prayer-book under the title Kern aller Gebete in Jena. In 1689 he became vicar of St. Maria Magdalen, Breslau. His observations on the city's mortality rates resulted in the treatise “Reflexionen über Leben und Tod bey denen in Breslau Geborenen und Gestorbenen” which he finally sent to Leibniz – the covering letter is documented, the text itself is lost. Leibniz seems to have informed the Royal Society
of Neumann's work. The society's secretary Henri Justel
invited Neumann in 1691 to provide the Society with the data he had collected. Neumann's mail is lost, Edmond Halley
's computations digesting Neumann's data have, however, survived – published in the Transactions of the Royal Society of 1693. In 1697 Neumann was appointed inspector of the Protestant schools and churches of Breslau. He eventually became vicar of St. Elisabeth and professor of theology at both the city's grammar schools. Neumann influenced Johann Christian Kundmann (1684–1751), who later published the first German comparative study of mortality rates in the Sammlung von Natur- Medizin- sowie auch dazu gehörigen Kunst- und Litteraturgeschichten (1718) ff.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
professor and clergyman from Breslau with a special interest in mortality rates.
Biography
The later clergyman made first an apprenticeship as a pharmacist. He finished his higher school education at Breslau's Maria-Magdalen grammar school. In 1667 he became a student of theology at the university of Jena, eventually he was ordinated priest. A journey through Germany and Switzerland followed, Neumann travelled as companion and tutor of the heredetary princes of duke Ernst the Pious. Back home he became a court-chaplain at AltenburgAltenburg
Altenburg is a town in the German federal state of Thuringia, 45 km south of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Altenburger Land district.-Geography:...
, and married the daughter of J. J. Rabe, physician in ordinary to the prince of Saxe-Friedenstein. In 1678 he became the deacon of St. Maria-Magdalen in Breslau. In 1680 he published his prayer-book under the title Kern aller Gebete in Jena. In 1689 he became vicar of St. Maria Magdalen, Breslau. His observations on the city's mortality rates resulted in the treatise “Reflexionen über Leben und Tod bey denen in Breslau Geborenen und Gestorbenen” which he finally sent to Leibniz – the covering letter is documented, the text itself is lost. Leibniz seems to have informed the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
of Neumann's work. The society's secretary Henri Justel
Henri Justel
Henri Justel was a French scholar and royal administrator, and also a bibliophile and librarian. He is known also as Henry Justel and Henricus Justellus. He was son of the scholar Christophe Justel....
invited Neumann in 1691 to provide the Society with the data he had collected. Neumann's mail is lost, Edmond Halley
Edmond Halley
Edmond Halley FRS was an English astronomer, geophysicist, mathematician, meteorologist, and physicist who is best known for computing the orbit of the eponymous Halley's Comet. He was the second Astronomer Royal in Britain, following in the footsteps of John Flamsteed.-Biography and career:Halley...
's computations digesting Neumann's data have, however, survived – published in the Transactions of the Royal Society of 1693. In 1697 Neumann was appointed inspector of the Protestant schools and churches of Breslau. He eventually became vicar of St. Elisabeth and professor of theology at both the city's grammar schools. Neumann influenced Johann Christian Kundmann (1684–1751), who later published the first German comparative study of mortality rates in the Sammlung von Natur- Medizin- sowie auch dazu gehörigen Kunst- und Litteraturgeschichten (1718) ff.
External links
Literature
- Schimmelpfennnig, K. A., "Kaspar Neumann (1648-1715)", in ADB, 23 (1886).
- Lischke, Ralph-Jürgen, Caspar Neumann (1648–1715). Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der Sterbetafeln, ed. Institut für Angewandte Demographie GmbH (Berlin, 1998).