La circulation des savoirs et des hommes dans l’espace euro-méditerranéen : le cas de « mathématiciens » français en Algérie (1868-1941)

• Published in: Philosophia scientiae Vol. 20; no. 2; pp. 61 - 92
• Main Authors: Yamina Bettahar, Christophe Eckes
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: German
• Published: Éditions Kimé 01-05-2016
• ISSN: 1281-2463; 1775-4283
• DOI: 10.4000/philosophiascientiae.1180

At the end of the 19th century, the foundations were laid for the colonial higher education system in Algeria—the creation of higher education schools in Algeria in 1880 and the foundation of a colonial university with a faculty system in 1909—and the university sphere thrived and developed considerably. French university personnel including botanists, geologists, doctors and mathematicians crossed the Mediterranean to live in Algeria on a long-term basis. This paper focuses on the analysis of such circulation of teachers and of exchanges in mathematics between mainland France and Algeria. The aim of the paper was to examine the evolutions of the circulation of university teachers through study of the careers of those who either stayed in Algeria for a short while (working at the Science School in Algiers was useful for careers in France) or those who spent their whole university and scientific careers working in Algeria. This study covers the 1868-1941 period and also asks questions about the contribution made (or not) by the colonial system to the training of you Algerian Muslim mathematicians.