Anton Wilhelm Amo – Google Doodle celebrates a African-German philosopher
Anton Wilhelm Amo Biographie
Today the search engine Google has shared an interactive Google doodle celebrating Anton Wilhelm Amo. This doodle has been illustrated by Berlin-based guest artist Diana Ejaita. Anton Wilhelm Amo is remembered for his great contribution towards the society.
Who was Anton Wilhelm ?
Anton Wilhelm AmoAmo
Born c. 1703
Axim
Died c. 1759
Other names Antonius Guilelmus Amo Afer
Education University of Helmstedt
University of Halle
University of Wittenberg
Era Contemporary philosophy
Region Western philosophy
School Rationalism
Institutions University of Halle
University of Jena
Main interests Philosophy of mind
Notable ideas Critique of Descartes’ philosophy of mind
Anton Wilhelm Amo or Anthony William Amo was an African-German philosopher originally from what is now Ghana. Amo was a teacher at the universities of Halle and Jena in Germany after studying there. Brought to Germany by the Dutch West India Company in 1707 as a child, and given as a gift to Dukes August Wilhelm and Ludwig Rudolf von Wolfenbüttel, he was treated as a member of the family by their father Anthony Ulrich, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. Amo was the first African-born person known to have attended a European university.
He went on to the University of Halle, whose Law School he entered in 1727. He finished his preliminary studies within two years, titling his thesis: Dissertatio Inauguralis De Jure Maurorum in Europa (1729). This manuscript on The Rights of Moors in Europe is lost, but a summary was published in his university’s Annals (1730).
For his further studies Amo moved to the University of Wittenberg, studying logic, metaphysics, physiology, astronomy, history, law, theology, politics, and medicine, and mastered six languages (English, French, Dutch, Latin, Greek, and German). His medical education in particular was to play a central role in much of his later philosophical thought.
In honor of Amo’s legacy, the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg created a statue in his likeness in 1965. In August 2020, Berlin proclaimed plans to name a street after him in the city’s Mitte district.
Source: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_Wilhelm_Amo
https://www.google.com/doodles/celebrating-anton-wilhelm-amo
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