Peter Crüger
Encyclopedia
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
— 1639) was a mathematician, astronomer, polymath
Polymath
A polymath is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas. In less formal terms, a polymath may simply be someone who is very knowledgeable...
, and teacher of Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius Some sources refer to Hevelius as Polish:Some sources refer to Hevelius as German:*Encyplopedia Britannica * of the Royal Society was a councilor and mayor of Danzig , Pomeranian Voivodeship, in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...
.
Life
In scientific documents published in Latin, his common name Krüger (GermanGerman language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
for potter or innkeeper, also spelled Krueger when the Umlaut (diacritic)
Umlaut (diacritic)
The diaeresis and the umlaut are diacritics that consist of two dots placed over a letter, most commonly a vowel. When that letter is an i or a j, the diacritic replaces the tittle: ï....
Ü
Ü
Ü, or ü, is a character which can be either a letter from several extended Latin alphabets, or the letter U with an umlaut or a diaeresis...
is not available) was Latinized and spelled Crüger, like e.g. in the case of Nicolaus Copernicus
Nicolaus Copernicus
Nicolaus Copernicus was a Renaissance astronomer and the first person to formulate a comprehensive heliocentric cosmology which displaced the Earth from the center of the universe....
. This distinguishes him from the many other people named Krüger
Kruger
Krüger, Kruger or Krueger without the Umlaut Ü are German surnames originating from Krüger, meaning tavern-keeper in Low Saxon or potter in High German.Notable people with the surname include:- People :* Alan B. Krueger, American economist...
, compared to the few named Crüger.
Crüger had studied in Königsberg, Leipzig
University of Leipzig
The University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...
and from Tycho Brahe
Tycho Brahe
Tycho Brahe , born Tyge Ottesen Brahe, was a Danish nobleman known for his accurate and comprehensive astronomical and planetary observations...
and Johannes Kepler
Johannes Kepler
Johannes Kepler was a German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer. A key figure in the 17th century scientific revolution, he is best known for his eponymous laws of planetary motion, codified by later astronomers, based on his works Astronomia nova, Harmonices Mundi, and Epitome of Copernican...
before he graduated in 1606 in Wittenberg.
Crüger then moved to the city of Danzig (Gdańsk) where he worked for the rest of his life as a professor of poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
and mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
at the Danziger Akademikum (Danzig Academy). As a philosopher and poet, he was associated with the poet Johannes Plavius
Johannes Plavius
Johannes Plavius was a German poet that most likely was born in Central German Thuringia, in Neuhausen or Plauen , from which his surname was derived.At the end of 1624, he was part of a Dichterkreis in Danzig in Poland and called himself...
who in his Institutio Poetica mentions Crüger in its opening letter. Crüger dedicated an extremely laudatory poem to Plavius, which appears in the preface to the Plavius' Praecepta logicalia.
At the time of the Thirty Years War a number of Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
ns took refuge from the ravages of war in their towns, among them Andreas Gryphius
Andreas Gryphius
Andreas Gryphius was a German lyric poet and dramatist.Asteroid 496 Gryphia is named in his honour.-Life and career:...
, who also came for a time to Danzig and was very much influenced by the famous mathematician and astronomer Peter Crüger. Professors Crüger and Mochingert made Gryphius aware of the new style of German-language poetry. Gryphius wrote memorial verses, when in 1638 Crüger's child died. Years ago Crüger had already developed a great friendship with Martin Opitz, "father of German poetry", who also lived in Danzig.
Crüger published treatises on many scientific subjects and contributed to the progress of trigonometry, geography and astronomy, also with the development of astronomical instruments. In the years 1627 to 1630, Crüger was the teacher of a teenager of the Hewelke family who would become known later as Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius Some sources refer to Hevelius as Polish:Some sources refer to Hevelius as German:*Encyplopedia Britannica * of the Royal Society was a councilor and mayor of Danzig , Pomeranian Voivodeship, in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...
, the astronomer. After Hevelius had returned to Danzig in 1634, the dying Crüger appealed to him to pursue astronomy. Hevelius gratefully mentions Crüger in his Machina coelestis.
The crater Crüger
Crüger (crater)
Crüger is a lunar crater that is located in the western part of the Moon, to the northeast of the much larger walled plain Darwin.The most distinctive feature about this crater is very dark interior floor that is one of the lowest albedo features on the Moon. The surface has been covered in...
on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
is named after him.