Pythagorean

theorem

In mathematics, the Pythagorean theorem or Pythagoras' theorem is a fundamental relation in

Euclidean geometry between the three sides of a right triangle. It states that the area of the
square whose side is the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of
the areas of the squares on the other two sides.

The theorem can be written as an equation relating the lengths of the sides a, b and the
hypotenuse c, sometimes called the Pythagorean equation:[1]

The theorem is named for the Greek philosopher Pythagoras, born around 570 BC. The theorem
has been proved numerous times by many different methods – possibly the most for any
mathematical theorem. The proofs are diverse, including both geometric proofs and algebraic
proofs, with some dating back thousands of years.

When Euclidean space is represented by a Cartesian coordinate system in analytic geometry,

Euclidean distance satisfies the Pythagorean relation: the squared distance between two points
equals the sum of squares of the difference in each coordinate between the points.
The theorem can be generalized in various
ways: to higher-dimensional spaces, to
spaces that are not Euclidean, to objects that Pythagorean
are not right triangles, and to objects that are
not triangles at all but n-dimensional solids. theorem

Proofs using
constructed
squares
Type Theorem

Field Euclidean
geometry

Statement The sum o

Rearrangement proof of the Pythagorean theorem.
(The area of the white space remains constant
throughout the translation rearrangement of the
the areas
triangles. At all moments in time, the area is always c².
And likewise, at all moments in time, the area is always of the two
a²+b².)

squares o
the legs (a
and b)
equals the
 area of th
Rearrangement
square on
proofs
the
In one rearrangement proof, two squares are
used whose sides have a measure of
hypotenus
and which contain four right triangles whose
sides are a, b and c, with the hypotenuse
(c).
being c. In the square on the right side, the
triangles are placed such that the corners of Symbolic
the square correspond to the corners of the
right angle in the triangles, forming a square in statement
the center whose sides are length c. Each

outer square has an area of as well

as , with representing the total
Generalizations Law
area of the four triangles. Within the big
square on the left side, the four triangles are cosin
moved to form two similar rectangles with
sides of length a and b. These rectangles in Solid
their new position have now delineated two
new squares, one having side length a is geom
formed in the bottom-left corner, and another
square of side length b formed in the top-right Non-
corner. In this new position, this left side now
has a square of area as well as Eucli
. Since both squares have the
area of it follows that the other
geom
measure of the square area also equal each
other such that = .
Diffe
With the area of the four triangles removed
from both side of the equation what remains
geom
[2]
is
In another proof rectangles in the second box
can also be placed such that both have one Consequences Pytha
corner that correspond to consecutive corners
of the square. In this way they also form two triple
boxes, this time in consecutive corners, with
areas and which will again lead to a Recip
second square of with the area

. Pytha
English mathematician Sir Thomas Heath
theor
gives this proof in his commentary on
Proposition I.47 in Euclid's Elements, and
Comp
mentions the proposals of German
mathematicians Carl Anton Bretschneider and
numb
Hermann Hankel that Pythagoras may have
known this proof. Heath himself favors a
Euclid
different proposal for a Pythagorean proof,
but acknowledges from the outset of his
discussion "that the Greek literature which we
distan
possess belonging to the first five centuries
after Pythagoras contains no statement
Pytha
specifying this or any other particular great
geometric discovery to him."[3] Recent
trigon
scholarship has cast increasing doubt on any
sort of role for Pythagoras as a creator of
identi
mathematics, although debate about this
continues.[4]
Algebraic proofs

Diagram of the two algebraic

proofs

The theorem can be proved algebraically using four copies of the same triangle arranged
symmetrically around a square with side c, as shown in the lower part of the diagram.[5] This
results in a larger square, with side a + b and area (a + b)2. The four triangles and the square side
c must have the same area as the larger square,

giving
A similar proof uses four copies of a right triangle with sides a, b and c, arranged inside a square
with side c as in the top half of the diagram.[6] The triangles are similar with area , while the
small square has side b − a and area (b − a)2. The area of the large square is therefore

But this is a square with side c and area c2, so

Other proofs of the theorem

This theorem may have more known proofs than any other (the law of quadratic reciprocity
being another contender for that distinction); the book The Pythagorean Proposition contains
370 proofs.[7]
Proof using similar triangles

Proof using similar triangles

This proof is based on the proportionality of the sides of three similar triangles, that is, upon the
fact that the ratio of any two corresponding sides of similar triangles is the same regardless of
the size of the triangles.

Let ABC represent a right triangle, with the right angle located at C, as shown on the figure. Draw
the altitude from point C, and call H its intersection with the side AB. Point H divides the length
of the hypotenuse c into parts d and e. The new triangle, ACH, is similar to triangle ABC, because
they both have a right angle (by definition of the altitude), and they share the angle at A, meaning
that the third angle will be the same in both triangles as well, marked as θ in the figure. By a
similar reasoning, the triangle CBH is also similar to ABC. The proof of similarity of the triangles
requires the triangle postulate: The sum of the angles in a triangle is two right angles, and is
equivalent to the parallel postulate. Similarity of the triangles leads to the equality of ratios of
corresponding sides:

The first result equates the cosines of the angles θ, whereas the second result equates their
sines.

These ratios can be written as

Summing these two equalities results in

which, after simplification, demonstrates the Pythagorean theorem:

The role of this proof in history is the subject of much speculation. The underlying question is
why Euclid did not use this proof, but invented another. One conjecture is that the proof by
similar triangles involved a theory of proportions, a topic not discussed until later in the
Elements, and that the theory of proportions needed further development at that time.[8]

Einstein's proof by dissection without

rearrangement

Right triangle on the hypotenuse

dissected into two similar right
triangles on the legs, according to
Einstein's proof.
Albert Einstein gave a proof by dissection in which the pieces do not need to be moved.[9]
Instead of using a square on the hypotenuse and two squares on the legs, one can use any other
shape that includes the hypotenuse, and two similar shapes that each include one of two legs
instead of the hypotenuse (see Similar figures on the three sides). In Einstein's proof, the shape
that includes the hypotenuse is the right triangle itself. The dissection consists of dropping a
perpendicular from the vertex of the right angle of the triangle to the hypotenuse, thus splitting
the whole triangle into two parts. Those two parts have the same shape as the original right
triangle, and have the legs of the original triangle as their hypotenuses, and the sum of their
areas is that of the original triangle. Because the ratio of the area of a right triangle to the square
of its hypotenuse is the same for similar triangles, the relationship between the areas of the
three triangles holds for the squares of the sides of the large triangle as well.

Euclid's proof

Proof in Euclid's Elements

In outline, here is how the proof in Euclid's Elements proceeds. The large square is divided into a
left and right rectangle. A triangle is constructed that has half the area of the left rectangle. Then
another triangle is constructed that has half the area of the square on the left-most side. These
two triangles are shown to be congruent, proving this square has the same area as the left
rectangle. This argument is followed by a similar version for the right rectangle and the
remaining square. Putting the two rectangles together to reform the square on the hypotenuse,
its area is the same as the sum of the area of the other two squares. The details follow.

Let A, B, C be the vertices of a right triangle, with a right angle at A. Drop a perpendicular from A
to the side opposite the hypotenuse in the square on the hypotenuse. That line divides the
square on the hypotenuse into two rectangles, each having the same area as one of the two
squares on the legs.

For the formal proof, we require four elementary lemmata:

1. If two triangles have two sides of the

one equal to two sides of the other,
each to each, and the angles included
by those sides equal, then the
triangles are congruent (side-angle-
side).

2. The area of a triangle is half the area

of any parallelogram on the same
base and having the same altitude.

3. The area of a rectangle is equal to the

product of two adjacent sides.
 4. The area of a square is equal to the
product of two of its sides (follows
from 3).
Next, each top square is related to a triangle congruent with another triangle related in turn to
one of two rectangles making up the lower square.[10]

Illustration including the new lines

Showing the two congruent triangles

of half the area of rectangle BDLK and
square BAGF

The proof is as follows:

1. Let ACB be a right-angled triangle
with right angle CAB.

2. On each of the sides BC, AB, and CA,

squares are drawn, CBDE, BAGF, and
ACIH, in that order. The construction
of squares requires the immediately
preceding theorems in Euclid, and
depends upon the parallel
postulate.[11]

3. From A, draw a line parallel to BD and

CE. It will perpendicularly intersect
BC and DE at K and L, respectively.

4. Join CF and AD, to form the triangles

BCF and BDA.
5. Angles CAB and BAG are both right
angles; therefore C, A, and G are
collinear.

6. Angles CBD and FBA are both right

angles; therefore angle ABD equals
angle FBC, since both are the sum of
a right angle and angle ABC.

7. Since AB is equal to FB, BD is equal

to BC and angle ABD equals angle
FBC, triangle ABD must be congruent
to triangle FBC.

8. Since A-K-L is a straight line, parallel

to BD, then rectangle BDLK has twice
the area of triangle ABD because they
share the base BD and have the same
 altitude BK, i.e., a line normal to their
common base, connecting the
parallel lines BD and AL. (lemma 2)

9. Since C is collinear with A and G, and

this line is parallel to FB, then square
BAGF must be twice in area to
triangle FBC.

10. Therefore, rectangle BDLK must have

the same area as square BAGF = AB2.

11. By applying steps 3 to 10 to the other

side of the figure, it can be similarly
shown that rectangle CKLE must
have the same area as square ACIH =
AC2.
 12. Adding these two results, AB2 + AC2 =
BD × BK + KL × KC

13. Since BD = KL, BD × BK + KL × KC =

BD(BK + KC) = BD × BC

14. Therefore, AB2 + AC2 = BC2, since

CBDE is a square.
This proof, which appears in Euclid's Elements as that of Proposition 47 in Book 1, demonstrates
that the area of the square on the hypotenuse is the sum of the areas of the other two
squares.[12][13] This is quite distinct from the proof by similarity of triangles, which is conjectured
to be the proof that Pythagoras used.[14][15]

Proofs by dissection and

rearrangement
Another by rearrangement is given by the middle animation. A large square is formed with area
c2, from four identical right triangles with sides a, b and c, fitted around a small central square.
Then two rectangles are formed with sides a and b by moving the triangles. Combining the
smaller square with these rectangles produces two squares of areas a2 and b2, which must have
the same area as the initial large square.[16]

The third, rightmost image also gives a proof. The upper two squares are divided as shown by
the blue and green shading, into pieces that when rearranged can be made to fit in the lower
square on the hypotenuse – or conversely the large square can be divided as shown into pieces
that fill the other two. This way of cutting one figure into pieces and rearranging them to get
another figure is called dissection. This shows the area of the large square equals that of the
two smaller ones.[17]

Animation showing proof by

rearrangement of four identical Animation showing another proof by Proof using an elaborate
right triangles rearrangement rearrangement

Proof by area-preserving shearing

Visual proof of the Pythagorean

theorem by area-preserving shearing
As shown in the accompanying animation, area-preserving shear mappings and translations can
transform the squares on the sides adjacent to the right-angle onto the square on the
hypotenuse, together covering it exactly.[18] Each shear leaves the base and height unchanged,
thus leaving the area unchanged too. The translations also leave the area unchanged, as they do
not alter the shapes at all. Each square is first sheared into a parallelogram, and then into a
rectangle which can be translated onto one section of the square on the hypotenuse.

Other algebraic proofs

A related proof was published by future U.S. President James A. Garfield (then a U.S.
Representative) (see diagram).[19][20][21] Instead of a square it uses a trapezoid, which can be
constructed from the square in the second of the above proofs by bisecting along a diagonal of
the inner square, to give the trapezoid as shown in the diagram. The area of the trapezoid can be
calculated to be half the area of the square, that is

The inner square is similarly halved, and there are only two triangles so the proof proceeds as

above except for a factor of , which is removed by multiplying by two to give the result.

Proof using differentials

One can arrive at the Pythagorean theorem by studying how changes in a side produce a change
in the hypotenuse and employing calculus.[22][23][24]
The triangle ABC is a right triangle, as shown in the upper part of the diagram, with BC the
hypotenuse. At the same time the triangle lengths are measured as shown, with the hypotenuse
of length y, the side AC of length x and the side AB of length a, as seen in the lower diagram part.

Diagram for differential proof

If x is increased by a small amount dx by extending the side AC slightly to D, then y also

increases by dy. These form two sides of a triangle, CDE, which (with E chosen so CE is
perpendicular to the hypotenuse) is a right triangle approximately similar to ABC. Therefore, the
ratios of their sides must be the same, that is:

This can be rewritten as , which is a differential equation that can be solved by

direct integration:
giving

The constant can be deduced from x = 0, y = a to give the equation

This is more of an intuitive proof than a formal one: it can be made more rigorous if proper limits
are used in place of dx and dy.

Converse
The converse of the theorem is also true:[25]

Given a triangle with sides of length a, b, and c, if a2 + b2 = c2, then the

angle between sides a and b is a right angle.

For any three positive real numbers a, b, and c such that a2 + b2 = c2, there exists a triangle with
sides a, b and c as a consequence of the converse of the triangle inequality.

This converse appears in Euclid's Elements (Book I, Proposition 48): "If in a triangle the square
on one of the sides equals the sum of the squares on the remaining two sides of the triangle,
then the angle contained by the remaining two sides of the triangle is right."[26]

It can be proved using the law of cosines or as follows:

Let ABC be a triangle with side lengths a, b, and c, with a2 + b2 = c2. Construct a second triangle
with sides of length a and b containing a right angle. By the Pythagorean theorem, it follows that
the hypotenuse of this triangle has length c = √ a2 + b2 , the same as the hypotenuse of the first
triangle. Since both triangles' sides are the same lengths a, b and c, the triangles are congruent
and must have the same angles. Therefore, the angle between the side of lengths a and b in the
original triangle is a right angle.

The above proof of the converse makes use of the Pythagorean theorem itself. The converse
can also be proved without assuming the Pythagorean theorem.[27][28]

A corollary of the Pythagorean theorem's converse is a simple means of determining whether a

triangle is right, obtuse, or acute, as follows. Let c be chosen to be the longest of the three sides
and a + b > c (otherwise there is no triangle according to the triangle inequality). The following
statements apply:[29]

If a2 + b2 = c2, then the triangle is right.

If a2 + b2 > c2, then the triangle is acute.

If a2 + b2 < c2, then the triangle is

obtuse.
Edsger W. Dijkstra has stated this proposition about acute, right, and obtuse triangles in this
language:

sgn(α + β − γ) = sgn(a2 + b2 − c2),

where α is the angle opposite to side a, β is the angle opposite to side b, γ is the angle opposite
to side c, and sgn is the sign function.[30]
Consequences and uses of the
theorem

Pythagorean triples
A Pythagorean triple has three positive integers a, b, and c, such that a2 + b2 = c2. In other words,
a Pythagorean triple represents the lengths of the sides of a right triangle where all three sides
have integer lengths.[1] Such a triple is commonly written (a, b, c). Some well-known examples
are (3, 4, 5) and (5, 12, 13).

A primitive Pythagorean triple is one in which a, b and c are coprime (the greatest common
divisor of a, b and c is 1).

The following is a list of primitive Pythagorean triples with values less than 100:

(3, 4, 5), (5, 12, 13), (7, 24, 25), (8, 15, 17),
(9, 40, 41), (11, 60, 61), (12, 35, 37), (13,
84, 85), (16, 63, 65), (20, 21, 29), (28, 45,
53), (33, 56, 65), (36, 77, 85), (39, 80, 89),
(48, 55, 73), (65, 72, 97)
Inverse Pythagorean theorem
Given a right triangle with sides and altitude (a line from the right angle and
perpendicular to the hypotenuse ). The Pythagorean theorem has,

while the inverse Pythagorean theorem relates the two legs to the altitude ,[31]

The equation can be transformed to,

where for any non-zero real . If the are to be integers, the smallest
solution is then

using the smallest Pythagorean triple . The reciprocal Pythagorean theorem is a special
case of the optic equation
where the denominators are squares and also for a heptagonal triangle whose sides are
square numbers.

Incommensurable lengths

The spiral of Theodorus: A

construction for line segments with
lengths whose ratios are the square
root of a positive integer

One of the consequences of the Pythagorean theorem is that line segments whose lengths are
incommensurable (so the ratio of which is not a rational number) can be constructed using a
straightedge and compass. Pythagoras' theorem enables construction of incommensurable
lengths because the hypotenuse of a triangle is related to the sides by the square root operation.

The figure on the right shows how to construct line segments whose lengths are in the ratio of
the square root of any positive integer.[32] Each triangle has a side (labeled "1") that is the
chosen unit for measurement. In each right triangle, Pythagoras' theorem establishes the length
of the hypotenuse in terms of this unit. If a hypotenuse is related to the unit by the square root of
a positive integer that is not a perfect square, it is a realization of a length incommensurable
with the unit, such as √ 2 , √ 3 , √ 5 . For more detail, see Quadratic irrational.

Incommensurable lengths conflicted with the Pythagorean school's concept of numbers as only
whole numbers. The Pythagorean school dealt with proportions by comparison of integer
multiples of a common subunit.[33] According to one legend, Hippasus of Metapontum (ca.
470 B.C.) was drowned at sea for making known the existence of the irrational or
incommensurable.[34] A careful discussion of Hippasus's contributions is found in Fritz.[35]

Complex numbers

The absolute value of a complex

number z is the distance r from z to
the origin.

For any complex number

the absolute value or modulus is given by

So the three quantities, r, x and y are related by the Pythagorean equation,

Note that r is defined to be a positive number or zero but x and y can be negative as well as
positive. Geometrically r is the distance of the z from zero or the origin O in the complex plane.

This can be generalised to find the distance between two points, z1 and z2 say. The required
distance is given by

so again they are related by a version of the Pythagorean equation,

Euclidean distance
The distance formula in Cartesian coordinates is derived from the Pythagorean theorem.[36] If
(x1, y1) and (x2, y2) are points in the plane, then the distance between them, also called the
Euclidean distance, is given by
More generally, in Euclidean n-space, the Euclidean distance between two points,
and , is defined, by generalization of the
Pythagorean theorem, as:

If instead of Euclidean distance, the square of this value (the squared Euclidean distance, or
SED) is used, the resulting equation avoids square roots and is simply a sum of the SED of the
coordinates:

The squared form is a smooth, convex function of both points, and is widely used in optimization
theory and statistics, forming the basis of least squares.

Euclidean distance in other coordinate

systems
If Cartesian coordinates are not used, for example, if polar coordinates are used in two
dimensions or, in more general terms, if curvilinear coordinates are used, the formulas
expressing the Euclidean distance are more complicated than the Pythagorean theorem, but can
be derived from it. A typical example where the straight-line distance between two points is
converted to curvilinear coordinates can be found in the applications of Legendre polynomials in
physics. The formulas can be discovered by using Pythagoras' theorem with the equations
relating the curvilinear coordinates to Cartesian coordinates. For example, the polar coordinates
(r, θ) can be introduced as:

Then two points with locations (r1, θ1) and (r2, θ2) are separated by a distance s:

Performing the squares and combining terms, the Pythagorean formula for distance in Cartesian
coordinates produces the separation in polar coordinates as:

using the trigonometric product-to-sum formulas. This formula is the law of cosines, sometimes
called the generalized Pythagorean theorem.[37] From this result, for the case where the radii to
the two locations are at right angles, the enclosed angle Δθ = π/2, and the form corresponding
to Pythagoras' theorem is regained: The Pythagorean theorem, valid for right
triangles, therefore is a special case of the more general law of cosines, valid for arbitrary
triangles.
Pythagorean trigonometric identity

Similar right triangles showing sine

and cosine of angle θ

In a right triangle with sides a, b and hypotenuse c, trigonometry determines the sine and cosine
of the angle θ between side a and the hypotenuse as:

From that it follows:

where the last step applies Pythagoras' theorem. This relation between sine and cosine is
sometimes called the fundamental Pythagorean trigonometric identity.[38] In similar triangles,
the ratios of the sides are the same regardless of the size of the triangles, and depend upon the
angles. Consequently, in the figure, the triangle with hypotenuse of unit size has opposite side of
size sin θ and adjacent side of size cos θ in units of the hypotenuse.
Relation to the cross product

The area of a parallelogram as a

cross product; vectors a and b identify
a plane and a × b is normal to this
plane.

The Pythagorean theorem relates the cross product and dot product in a similar way:[39]

This can be seen from the definitions of the cross product and dot product, as

with n a unit vector normal to both a and b. The relationship follows from these definitions and
the Pythagorean trigonometric identity.

This can also be used to define the cross product. By rearranging the following equation is
obtained
This can be considered as a condition on the cross product and so part of its definition, for
example in seven dimensions.[40][41]

As an axiom
If the first four of the Euclidean geometry axioms are assumed to be true then the Pythagorean
theorem is equivalent to the fifth. That is, Euclid's fifth postulate implies the Pythagorean
theorem and vice-versa.

Generalizations

Similar figures on the three sides

The Pythagorean theorem generalizes beyond the areas of squares on the three sides to any
similar figures. This was known by Hippocrates of Chios in the 5th century BC,[42] and was
included by Euclid in his Elements:[43]

If one erects similar figures (see Euclidean geometry) with

corresponding sides on the sides of a right triangle, then the sum of
the areas of the ones on the two smaller sides equals the area of the
one on the larger side.

This extension assumes that the sides of the original triangle are the corresponding sides of the
three congruent figures (so the common ratios of sides between the similar figures are a:b:c).[44]
While Euclid's proof only applied to convex polygons, the theorem also applies to concave
polygons and even to similar figures that have curved boundaries (but still with part of a figure's
boundary being the side of the original triangle).[44]

The basic idea behind this generalization is that the area of a plane figure is proportional to the
square of any linear dimension, and in particular is proportional to the square of the length of
any side. Thus, if similar figures with areas A, B and C are erected on sides with corresponding
lengths a, b and c then:

But, by the Pythagorean theorem, a2 + b2 = c2, so A + B = C.

Conversely, if we can prove that A + B = C for three similar figures without using the Pythagorean
theorem, then we can work backwards to construct a proof of the theorem. For example, the
starting center triangle can be replicated and used as a triangle C on its hypotenuse, and two
similar right triangles (A and B ) constructed on the other two sides, formed by dividing the
central triangle by its altitude. The sum of the areas of the two smaller triangles therefore is that
of the third, thus A + B = C and reversing the above logic leads to the Pythagorean theorem a2 +
b2 = c2. (See also Einstein's proof by dissection without rearrangement)
 Pythagoras' theorem using similar
Generalization for similar triangles, right triangles
green area A + B = blue area C Generalization for regular pentagons

Law of cosines

The separation s of two

points (r1, θ1) and (r2, θ2) in
polar coordinates is given by
the law of cosines. Interior
angle Δθ = θ1−θ2.

The Pythagorean theorem is a special case of the more general theorem relating the lengths of
sides in any triangle, the law of cosines, which states that
where is the angle between sides and
.[45]
When is radians or 90°, then , and the formula reduces to the usual Pythagorean

theorem.

Arbitrary triangle

Generalization of Pythagoras'
theorem by Tâbit ibn Qorra.[46] Lower
panel: reflection of triangle CAD (top)
to form triangle DAC, similar to
triangle ABC (top).

At any selected angle of a general triangle of sides a, b, c, inscribe an isosceles triangle such
that the equal angles at its base θ are the same as the selected angle. Suppose the selected
angle θ is opposite the side labeled c. Inscribing the isosceles triangle forms triangle CAD with
angle θ opposite side b and with side r along c. A second triangle is formed with angle θ
opposite side a and a side with length s along c, as shown in the figure. Thābit ibn Qurra stated
that the sides of the three triangles were related as:[47][48]

As the angle θ approaches π/2, the base of the isosceles triangle narrows, and lengths r and s
overlap less and less. When θ = π/2, ADB becomes a right triangle, r + s = c, and the original
Pythagorean theorem is regained.

One proof observes that triangle ABC has the same angles as triangle CAD, but in opposite
order. (The two triangles share the angle at vertex A, both contain the angle θ, and so also have
the same third angle by the triangle postulate.) Consequently, ABC is similar to the reflection of
CAD, the triangle DAC in the lower panel. Taking the ratio of sides opposite and adjacent to θ,

Likewise, for the reflection of the other triangle,

Clearing fractions and adding these two relations:

the required result.

The theorem remains valid if the angle is obtuse so the lengths r and s are non-overlapping.
General triangles using parallelograms

Generalization for arbitrary triangles,

green area = blue area

Construction for proof of

parallelogram generalization

Pappus's area theorem is a further generalization, that applies to triangles that are not right
triangles, using parallelograms on the three sides in place of squares (squares are a special
case, of course). The upper figure shows that for a scalene triangle, the area of the
parallelogram on the longest side is the sum of the areas of the parallelograms on the other two
sides, provided the parallelogram on the long side is constructed as indicated (the dimensions
labeled with arrows are the same, and determine the sides of the bottom parallelogram). This
replacement of squares with parallelograms bears a clear resemblance to the original
Pythagoras' theorem, and was considered a generalization by Pappus of Alexandria in 4 AD[49][50]

The lower figure shows the elements of the proof. Focus on the left side of the figure. The left
green parallelogram has the same area as the left, blue portion of the bottom parallelogram
because both have the same base b and height h. However, the left green parallelogram also has
the same area as the left green parallelogram of the upper figure, because they have the same
base (the upper left side of the triangle) and the same height normal to that side of the triangle.
Repeating the argument for the right side of the figure, the bottom parallelogram has the same
area as the sum of the two green parallelograms.

Solid geometry

Pythagoras' theorem in three

dimensions relates the
diagonal AD to the three
sides.

A tetrahedron with outward

facing right-angle corner

In terms of solid geometry, Pythagoras' theorem can be applied to three dimensions as follows.
Consider the cuboid shown in the figure. The length of face diagonal AC is found from
Pythagoras' theorem as:
where these three sides form a right triangle. Using diagonal AC and the horizontal edge CD, the
length of body diagonal AD then is found by a second application of Pythagoras' theorem as:

or, doing it all in one step:

This result is the three-dimensional expression for the magnitude of a vector v (the diagonal AD)
in terms of its orthogonal components {vk} (the three mutually perpendicular sides):

This one-step formulation may be viewed as a generalization of Pythagoras' theorem to higher

dimensions. However, this result is really just the repeated application of the original Pythagoras'
theorem to a succession of right triangles in a sequence of orthogonal planes.

A substantial generalization of the Pythagorean theorem to three dimensions is de Gua's

theorem, named for Jean Paul de Gua de Malves: If a tetrahedron has a right angle corner (like a
corner of a cube), then the square of the area of the face opposite the right angle corner is the
sum of the squares of the areas of the other three faces. This result can be generalized as in the
"n-dimensional Pythagorean theorem":[51]

Let be orthogonal vectors in Rn. Consider the n-dimensional

simplex S with vertices . (Think of the (n − 1)-dimensional simplex
with vertices not including the origin as the "hypotenuse" of S and the
remaining (n − 1)-dimensional faces of S as its "legs".) Then the square of the
volume of the hypotenuse of S is the sum of the squares of the volumes of the n legs.
This statement is illustrated in three dimensions by the tetrahedron in the figure. The
"hypotenuse" is the base of the tetrahedron at the back of the figure, and the "legs" are the three
sides emanating from the vertex in the foreground. As the depth of the base from the vertex
increases, the area of the "legs" increases, while that of the base is fixed. The theorem suggests
that when this depth is at the value creating a right vertex, the generalization of Pythagoras'
theorem applies. In a different wording:[52]

Given an n-rectangular n-dimensional simplex, the square of the (n − 1)-content of

the facet opposing the right vertex will equal the sum of the squares of the (n − 1)-
contents of the remaining facets.

Inner product spaces

Vectors involved in the parallelogram

law

The Pythagorean theorem can be generalized to inner product spaces,[53] which are
generalizations of the familiar 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional Euclidean spaces. For example,
a function may be considered as a vector with infinitely many components in an inner product
space, as in functional analysis.[54]

In an inner product space, the concept of perpendicularity is replaced by the concept of

orthogonality: two vectors v and w are orthogonal if their inner product is zero. The inner
product is a generalization of the dot product of vectors. The dot product is called the standard
inner product or the Euclidean inner product. However, other inner products are possible.[55]

The concept of length is replaced by the concept of the norm ‖v‖ of a vector v, defined as:[56]
In an inner-product space, the Pythagorean theorem states that for any two orthogonal vectors v
and w we have

Here the vectors v and w are akin to the sides of a right triangle with hypotenuse given by the
vector sum v + w. This form of the Pythagorean theorem is a consequence of the properties of
the inner product:

where because of orthogonality.

A further generalization of the Pythagorean theorem in an inner product space to non-orthogonal

vectors is the parallelogram law:[56]

which says that twice the sum of the squares of the lengths of the sides of a parallelogram is
the sum of the squares of the lengths of the diagonals. Any norm that satisfies this equality is
ipso facto a norm corresponding to an inner product.[56]

The Pythagorean identity can be extended to sums of more than two orthogonal vectors. If v1, v2,
..., vn are pairwise-orthogonal vectors in an inner-product space, then application of the
Pythagorean theorem to successive pairs of these vectors (as described for 3-dimensions in the
section on solid geometry) results in the equation[57]

Sets of m-dimensional objects in n-

dimensional space
Another generalization of the Pythagorean theorem applies to Lebesgue-measurable sets of
objects in any number of dimensions. Specifically, the square of the measure of an m-
dimensional set of objects in one or more parallel m-dimensional flats in n-dimensional
Euclidean space is equal to the sum of the squares of the measures of the orthogonal
projections of the object(s) onto all m-dimensional coordinate subspaces.[58]

In mathematical terms:

where:

is a measure in m-dimensions (a
length in one dimension, an area in two
dimensions, a volume in three
dimensions, etc.).

is a set of one or more non-

overlapping m-dimensional objects in
one or more parallel m-dimensional flats
in n-dimensional Euclidean space.

is the total measure (sum) of the

set of m-dimensional objects.

represents an m-dimensional
projection of the original set onto an
orthogonal coordinate subspace.

is the measure of the m-

dimensional set projection onto m-
dimensional coordinate subspace .
Because object projections can overlap
on a coordinate subspace, the measure
of each object projection in the set must
be calculated individually, then
measures of all projections added
together to provide the total measure for
the set of projections on the given
coordinate subspace.

is the number of orthogonal, m-

dimensional coordinate subspaces in n-
dimensional space (Rn) onto which the
m-dimensional objects are projected (m
≤ n):
Non-Euclidean geometry
The Pythagorean theorem is derived from the axioms of Euclidean geometry, and in fact, were
the Pythagorean theorem to fail for some right triangle, then the plane in which this triangle is
contained cannot be Euclidean. More precisely, the Pythagorean theorem implies, and is implied
by, Euclid's Parallel (Fifth) Postulate.[59][60] Thus, right triangles in a non-Euclidean geometry[61]
do not satisfy the Pythagorean theorem. For example, in spherical geometry, all three sides of
the right triangle (say a, b, and c) bounding an octant of the unit sphere have length equal to π/2,
and all its angles are right angles, which violates the Pythagorean theorem because

Here two cases of non-Euclidean geometry are considered—spherical geometry and hyperbolic
plane geometry; in each case, as in the Euclidean case for non-right triangles, the result
replacing the Pythagorean theorem follows from the appropriate law of cosines.

However, the Pythagorean theorem remains true in hyperbolic geometry and elliptic geometry if
the condition that the triangle be right is replaced with the condition that two of the angles sum
to the third, say A+B = C. The sides are then related as follows: the sum of the areas of the
circles with diameters a and b equals the area of the circle with diameter c.[62]

Spherical geometry

Spherical triangle
For any right triangle on a sphere of radius R (for example, if γ in the figure is a right angle), with
sides a, b, c, the relation between the sides takes the form:[63]

This equation can be derived as a special case of the spherical law of cosines that applies to all
spherical triangles:

For infinitesimal triangles on the sphere (or equivalently, for finite spherical triangles on a sphere
of infinite radius), the spherical relation between the sides of a right triangle reduces to the
Euclidean form of the Pythagorean theorem. To see how, assume we have a spherical triangle of
fixed side lengths a, b, and c on a sphere with expanding radius R. As R approaches infinity the
quantities a/R, b/R, and c/R tend to zero and the spherical Pythagorean identity reduces to
so we must look at its asymptotic expansion.

The Maclaurin series for the cosine function can be written as

with the remainder term in big O notation. Letting be a side of the triangle, and
treating the expression as an asymptotic expansion in terms of R for a fixed c,

and likewise for a and b. Substituting the asymptotic expansion for each of the cosines into the
spherical relation for a right triangle yields
Subtracting 1 and then negating each side,

Multiplying through by 2R2, the asymptotic expansion for c in terms of fixed a, b and variable R
is

The Euclidean Pythagorean relationship is recovered in the limit, as the

remainder vanishes when the radius R approaches infinity.

For practical computation in spherical trigonometry with small right triangles, cosines can be

replaced with sines using the double-angle identity to avoid loss of

significance. Then the spherical Pythagorean theorem can alternately be written as
Hyperbolic geometry

Hyperbolic triangle

In a hyperbolic space with uniform Gaussian curvature −1/R2, for a right triangle with legs a, b,
and hypotenuse c, the relation between the sides takes the form:[64]

where cosh is the hyperbolic cosine. This formula is a special form of the hyperbolic law of
cosines that applies to all hyperbolic triangles:[65]

with γ the angle at the vertex opposite the side c.

By using the Maclaurin series for the hyperbolic cosine, cosh x ≈ 1 + x2/2, it can be shown that
as a hyperbolic triangle becomes very small (that is, as a, b, and c all approach zero), the
hyperbolic relation for a right triangle approaches the form of Pythagoras' theorem.

For small right triangles (a, b << R), the hyperbolic cosines can be eliminated to avoid loss of
significance, giving
Very small triangles
For any uniform curvature K (positive, zero, or negative), in very small right triangles (|K|a2, |K|b2
<< 1) with hypotenuse c, it can be shown that

Differential geometry

Distance between infinitesimally

separated points in Cartesian
coordinates (top) and polar
coordinates (bottom), as given by
Pythagoras' theorem

The Pythagorean theorem applies to infinitesimal triangles seen in differential geometry. In three
dimensional space, the distance between two infinitesimally separated points satisfies
with ds the element of distance and (dx, dy, dz) the components of the vector separating the two
points. Such a space is called a Euclidean space. However, in Riemannian geometry, a
generalization of this expression useful for general coordinates (not just Cartesian) and general
spaces (not just Euclidean) takes the form:[66]

which is called the metric tensor. (Sometimes, by abuse of language, the same term is applied to
the set of coefficients gij.) It may be a function of position, and often describes curved space. A
simple example is Euclidean (flat) space expressed in curvilinear coordinates. For example, in
polar coordinates:

History

The Plimpton 322 tablet records

Pythagorean triples from Babylonian
times.[67]
There is debate whether the Pythagorean theorem was discovered once, or many times in many
places, and the date of first discovery is uncertain, as is the date of the first proof. Historians of
Mesopotamian mathematics have concluded that the Pythagorean rule was in widespread use
during the Old Babylonian period (20th to 16th centuries BC), over a thousand years before
Pythagoras was born.[68][69][70][71] The history of the theorem can be divided into four parts:
knowledge of Pythagorean triples, knowledge of the relationship among the sides of a right
triangle, knowledge of the relationships among adjacent angles, and proofs of the theorem
within some deductive system.

Written c. 1800 BC, the Egyptian Middle Kingdom Berlin Papyrus 6619 includes a problem whose
solution is the Pythagorean triple 6:8:10, but the problem does not mention a triangle. The
Mesopotamian tablet Plimpton 322, written near Larsa also c. 1800 BC, contains many entries
closely related to Pythagorean triples.[72]

In India, the Baudhayana Shulba Sutra, the dates of which are given variously as between the 8th
and 5th century BC,[73] contains a list of Pythagorean triples and a statement of the Pythagorean
theorem, both in the special case of the isosceles right triangle and in the general case, as does
the Apastamba Shulba Sutra (c. 600 BC).[a]

Byzantine Neoplatonic philosopher and mathematician Proclus, writing in the fifth century AD,
states two arithmetic rules, "one of them attributed to Plato, the other to Pythagoras",[76] for
generating special Pythagorean triples. The rule attributed to Pythagoras (c. 570 – c. 495 BC)
starts from an odd number and produces a triple with leg and hypotenuse differing by one unit;
the rule attributed to Plato (428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) starts from an even number and
produces a triple with leg and hypotenuse differing by two units. According to Thomas L. Heath
(1861–1940), no specific attribution of the theorem to Pythagoras exists in the surviving Greek
literature from the five centuries after Pythagoras lived.[77] However, when authors such as
Plutarch and Cicero attributed the theorem to Pythagoras, they did so in a way which suggests
that the attribution was widely known and undoubted.[78][79] Classicist Kurt von Fritz wrote,
"Whether this formula is rightly attributed to Pythagoras personally ... one can safely assume
that it belongs to the very oldest period of Pythagorean mathematics."[35] Around 300 BC, in
Euclid's Elements, the oldest extant axiomatic proof of the theorem is presented.[80]
 Geometric proof of the Pythagorean
theorem from the Zhoubi Suanjing

With contents known much earlier, but in surviving texts dating from roughly the 1st century BC,
the Chinese text Zhoubi Suanjing ( 周髀算经), (The Arithmetical Classic of the Gnomon and the
Circular Paths of Heaven) gives a reasoning for the Pythagorean theorem for the (3, 4, 5) triangle
— in China it is called the "Gougu theorem" ( 勾股定理). [81][82]
During the Han Dynasty (202 BC to
220 AD), Pythagorean triples appear in The Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art,[83] together
with a mention of right triangles.[84] Some believe the theorem arose first in China in the 11th
century BC,[85] where it is alternatively known as the "Shang Gao theorem" ( 商高定理), [86]
named
after the Duke of Zhou's astronomer and mathematician, whose reasoning composed most of
what was in the Zhoubi Suanjing.[87]

See also

Addition in quadrature Mathematics

portal
At Dulcarnon

British flag theorem

Bride's Chair

Fermat's Last Theorem

Garfield's proof of the Pythagorean
theorem

Hsuan thu

Inverse Pythagorean theorem

Kepler triangle

Linear algebra

List of triangle topics

Lp space

Nonhypotenuse number

Parallelogram law

Parseval's identity

Ptolemy's theorem

Pythagoras in popular culture

Pythagorean expectation
 Pythagorean tiling

Rational trigonometry in Pythagoras'

theorem

Thales theorem

Notes and references

Notes

a. Van der Waerden believed that this

material "was certainly based on earlier
traditions".[74] Carl Boyer states that the
Pythagorean theorem in the Śulba-sũtram
may have been influenced by ancient
Mesopotamian math, but there is no
conclusive evidence in favor or opposition
of this possibility.[75]
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3AoAC&pg=PA25) )
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and Figure 123)

18. Polster, Burkard (2004). Q.E.D.: Beauty in

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39. WS Massey (Dec 1983). "Cross products
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spaces" (https://web.archive.org/web/202
10226011747/https://pdfs.semanticschol
ar.org/1f6b/ff1e992f60eb87b35c3ceed04
272fb5cc298.pdf) (PDF). The American
Mathematical Monthly. 90 (10).
Mathematical Association of America:
697–701. doi:10.2307/2323537 (https://d
oi.org/10.2307%2F2323537) .
JSTOR 2323537 (https://www.jstor.org/st
able/2323537) . S2CID 43318100 (https://
api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:433181
00) . Archived from the original (https://pd
fs.semanticscholar.org/1f6b/ff1e992f60e
b87b35c3ceed04272fb5cc298.pdf) (PDF)
on 2021-02-26.
40. Pertti Lounesto (2001). "§7.4 Cross
product of two vectors" (https://books.goo
gle.com/books?id=kOsybQWDK4oC&pg=P
A96) . Clifford algebras and spinors
(2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
p. 96. ISBN 0-521-00551-5.

41. Francis Begnaud Hildebrand (1992).

Methods of applied mathematics (https://
books.google.com/books?id=17EZkWPz_
eQC&pg=PA24) (Reprint of Prentice-Hall
1965 2nd ed.). Courier Dover Publications.
p. 24. ISBN 0-486-67002-3.

42. Heath, T. L., A History of Greek

Mathematics, Oxford University Press,
1921; reprinted by Dover, 1981.
43. Euclid's Elements: Book VI, Proposition VI
31: "In right-angled triangles the figure on
the side subtending the right angle is
equal to the similar and similarly
described figures on the sides containing
the right angle."

44. Putz, John F. and Sipka, Timothy A. "On

generalizing the Pythagorean theorem",
The College Mathematics Journal 34 (4),
September 2003, pp. 291–295.

45. Lawrence S. Leff (2005-05-01). cited work

(https://books.google.com/books?id=y_7y
rqrHTb4C&pg=PA326) . Barron's
Educational Series. p. 326. ISBN 0-7641-
2892-2.
46. Howard Whitley Eves (1983).
"§4.8:...generalization of Pythagorean
theorem". Great moments in mathematics
(before 1650) (https://archive.org/details/
greatmomentsinma0007eves) .
Mathematical Association of America.
p. 41 (https://archive.org/details/greatmo
mentsinma0007eves/page/41) . ISBN 0-
88385-310-8.

47. Aydin Sayili (Mar 1960). "Thâbit ibn Qurra's

Generalization of the Pythagorean
Theorem". Isis. 51 (1): 35–37.
doi:10.1086/348837 (https://doi.org/10.1
086%2F348837) . JSTOR 227603 (https://
www.jstor.org/stable/227603) .
S2CID 119868978 (https://api.semanticsc
holar.org/CorpusID:119868978) .
48. Judith D. Sally; Paul Sally (2007-12-21).
"Exercise 2.10 (ii)" (https://books.google.c
om/books?id=nHxBw-WlECUC&pg=PA6
2) . Roots to Research: A Vertical
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American Mathematical Soc. p. 62.
ISBN 978-0-8218-4403-8.

49. For the details of such a construction, see

Jennings, George (1997). "Figure 1.32: The
generalized Pythagorean theorem".
Modern geometry with applications: with
150 figures (https://archive.org/details/m
oderngeometrywi0000jenn) (3rd ed.).
Springer. p. 23 (https://archive.org/detail
s/moderngeometrywi0000jenn/page/23) .
ISBN 0-387-94222-X.
50. Claudi Alsina, Roger B. Nelsen: Charming
Proofs: A Journey Into Elegant
Mathematics. MAA, 2010,
ISBN 9780883853481, pp. 77–78 (excerpt
(https://books.google.com/books?id=mIT
5-BN_L0oC&pg=PA77) , p. 77, at Google
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51. Rajendra Bhatia (1997). Matrix analysis (ht

tps://books.google.com/books?id=eay3H
ALl620C&pg=PA21) . Springer. p. 21.
ISBN 0-387-94846-5.
52. For an extended discussion of this
generalization, see, for example, Willie W.
Wong (http://www.dpmms.cam.ac.uk/~w
w278/papers/gp.pdf) Archived (https://w
eb.archive.org/web/20091229111557/htt
p://www.dpmms.cam.ac.uk/~ww278/pap
ers/gp.pdf) 2009-12-29 at the Wayback
Machine 2002, A generalized n-
dimensional Pythagorean theorem.

53. Ferdinand van der Heijden; Dick de Ridder

(2004). Classification, parameter
estimation, and state estimation (https://b
ooks.google.com/books?id=krSB9PIKMS
YC&pg=PA357) . Wiley. p. 357. ISBN 0-
470-09013-8.
54. Qun Lin; Jiafu Lin (2006). Finite element
methods: accuracy and improvement (http
s://books.google.com/books?id=cMvAqz
MuAWgC&pg=PA23) . Elsevier. p. 23.
ISBN 7-03-016656-6.

55. Howard Anton; Chris Rorres (2010).

Elementary Linear Algebra: Applications
Version (https://books.google.com/book
s?id=1PJ-WHepeBsC&pg=PA336)
(10th ed.). Wiley. p. 336. ISBN 978-0-470-
43205-1.

56. Karen Saxe (2002). "Theorem 1.2" (https://

books.google.com/books?id=QALoZC64e
a0C&pg=PA7) . Beginning functional
analysis. Springer. p. 7. ISBN 0-387-95224-
1.
57. Douglas, Ronald G. (1998). Banach
Algebra Techniques in Operator Theory (ht
tps://books.google.com/books?id=-OdfXe
NmrT0C&pg=PA60) (2nd ed.). New York,
New York: Springer-Verlag New York, Inc.
pp. 60–61. ISBN 978-0-387-98377-6.

58. Donald R Conant & William A Beyer (Mar

1974). "Generalized Pythagorean
Theorem". The American Mathematical
Monthly. 81 (3). Mathematical Association
of America: 262–265.
doi:10.2307/2319528 (https://doi.org/10.
2307%2F2319528) . JSTOR 2319528 (http
s://www.jstor.org/stable/2319528) .
59. Eric W. Weisstein (2003). CRC concise
encyclopedia of mathematics (https://boo
ks.google.com/books?id=aFDWuZZslUUC
&pg=PA2147) (2nd ed.). CRC Press.
p. 2147. ISBN 1-58488-347-2. "The parallel
postulate is equivalent to the Equidistance
postulate, Playfair axiom, Proclus axiom,
the Triangle postulate and the
Pythagorean theorem."
60. Alexander R. Pruss (2006). The principle
of sufficient reason: a reassessment (http
s://books.google.com/books?id=8qAxk1r
XIjQC&pg=PA11) . Cambridge University
Press. p. 11. ISBN 0-521-85959-X. "We
could include...the parallel postulate and
derive the Pythagorean theorem. Or we
could instead make the Pythagorean
theorem among the other axioms and
derive the parallel postulate."

61. Stephen W. Hawking (2005). cited work (h

ttps://books.google.com/books?id=3zdFS
OS3f4AC&pg=PA4) . Running Press. p. 4.
ISBN 0-7624-1922-9.
62. Victor Pambuccian (December 2010).
"Maria Teresa Calapso's Hyperbolic
Pythagorean Theorem" (https://doi.org/10.
1007%2Fs00283-010-9169-0) . The
Mathematical Intelligencer. 32 (4): 2.
doi:10.1007/s00283-010-9169-0 (https://d
oi.org/10.1007%2Fs00283-010-9169-0) .

63. Barrett O'Neill (2006). "Exercise 4" (https://

books.google.com/books?id=OtbNXAIve_
AC&pg=PA441) . Elementary Differential
Geometry (2nd ed.). Academic Press.
p. 441. ISBN 0-12-088735-5.
64. Saul Stahl (1993). "Theorem 8.3" (https://b
ooks.google.com/books?id=TABicHVMQh
MC&pg=PA122) . The Poincaré half-plane:
a gateway to modern geometry. Jones &
Bartlett Learning. p. 122. ISBN 0-86720-
298-X.

65. Jane Gilman (1995). "Hyperbolic triangles"

(https://books.google.com/books?id=YRF
z9Zj_vAAC&pg=PA74) . Two-generator
discrete subgroups of PSL(2,R). American
Mathematical Society Bookstore. ISBN 0-
8218-0361-1.
66. Tai L. Chow (2000). Mathematical
methods for physicists: a concise
introduction (https://books.google.com/b
ooks?id=MpRXPOYZzfUC&pg=PA52) .
Cambridge University Press. p. 52. ISBN 0-
521-65544-7.

67. Neugebauer 1969, p. 36.

68. Neugebauer 1969: p. 36 "In other words it

was known during the whole duration of
Babylonian mathematics that the sum of
the squares on the lengths of the sides of
a right triangle equals the square of the
length of the hypotenuse."
69. Friberg, Jöran (1981). "Methods and
traditions of Babylonian mathematics:
Plimpton 322, Pythagorean triples, and the
Babylonian triangle parameter equations"
(https://www.researchgate.net/publicatio
n/222892801) . Historia Mathematica. 8:
277–318. doi:10.1016/0315-
0860(81)90069-0 (https://doi.org/10.101
6%2F0315-0860%2881%2990069-0) .: p.
306 "Although Plimpton 322 is a unique
text of its kind, there are several other
known texts testifying that the
Pythagorean theorem was well known to
the mathematicians of the Old Babylonian
period."
70. Høyrup, Jens. "Pythagorean 'Rule' and
'Theorem' – Mirror of the Relation
Between Babylonian and Greek
Mathematics". In Renger, Johannes (ed.).
Babylon: Focus mesopotamischer
Geschichte, Wiege früher Gelehrsamkeit,
Mythos in der Moderne. 2. Internationales
Colloquium der Deutschen Orient-
Gesellschaft 24.–26. März 1998 in Berlin
(http://akira.ruc.dk/~jensh/Publications/P
ythrule.pdf) (PDF). Berlin: Deutsche
Orient-Gesellschaft / Saarbrücken: SDV
Saarbrücker Druckerei und Verlag.
pp. 393–407., p. 406, "To judge from this
evidence alone it is therefore likely that
the Pythagorean rule was discovered
within the lay surveyors’ environment,
possibly as a spin-off from the problem
treated in Db2-146, somewhere between
2300 and 1825 BC." (Db2-146 is an Old
Babylonian clay tablet from Eshnunna
concerning the computation of the sides
of a rectangle given its area and diagonal.)
71. Robson, E. (2008). Mathematics in
Ancient Iraq: A Social History. Princeton
University Press.: p. 109 "Many Old
Babylonian mathematical practitioners …
knew that the square on the diagonal of a
right triangle had the same area as the
sum of the squares on the length and
width: that relationship is used in the
worked solutions to word problems on
cut-and-paste ‘algebra’ on seven different
tablets, from Ešnuna, Sippar, Susa, and an
unknown location in southern Babylonia."
72. Robson, Eleanor (2001). "Neither Sherlock
Holmes nor Babylon: a reassessment of
Plimpton 322" (https://ora.ox.ac.uk/object
s/uuid:e3d8eedb-e745-45b3-8612-71f895
1599aa) . Historia Mathematica. 28 (3):
167–206. doi:10.1006/hmat.2001.2317 (h
ttps://doi.org/10.1006%2Fhmat.2001.231
7) .

73. Kim Plofker (2009). Mathematics in India.

Princeton University Press. pp. 17–18 (htt
ps://books.google.com/books?id=DHvTh
PNp9yMC&pg=PA17) . ISBN 978-0-691-
12067-6.

74. Bartel L. van der Waerden (2012).

Geometry and Algebra in Ancient
Civilizations. Springer Science & Business
Media. p. 26.
75. Carl Benjamin Boyer; Uta C. Merzbach
(2011). "China and India". A history of
mathematics (https://books.google.com/
books?id=bR9HAAAAQBAJ) (3rd ed.).
Wiley. p. 229. ISBN 978-0470525487.
"Quote: [In Sulba-sutras,] we find rules for
the construction of right angles by means
of triples of cords the lengths of which
form Pythagorean triages, such as 3, 4,
and 5, or 5, 12, and 13, or 8, 15, and 17, or
12, 35, and 37. Although Mesopotamian
influence in the Sulvasũtras is not unlikely,
we know of no conclusive evidence for or
against this. Aspastamba knew that the
square on the diagonal of a rectangle is
equal to the sum of the squares on the
two adjacent sides. Less easily explained
 is another rule given by Apastamba – one
that strongly resembles some of the
geometric algebra in Book II of Euclid's
Elements. (...)"

76. Proclus (1970). A Commentary of the First

Book of Euclid's Elements. Translated by
Morrow, Glenn R. Princeton University
Press. 428.6.

77. "Introduction and books 1,2" (https://book

s.google.com/books?id=UhgPAAAAIAAJ&
pg=PA351) . The University Press. March
25, 1908 – via Google Books.
78. (Heath 1921, Vol I, p. 144): "Though this is
the proposition universally associated by
tradition with the name of Pythagoras, no
really trustworthy evidence exists that it
was actually discovered by him. The
comparatively late writers who attribute it
to him add the story that he sacrificed an
ox to celebrate his discovery."

79. An extensive discussion of the historical

evidence is provided in (Euclid 1956,
p. 351) page=351 (https://books.google.c
om/books?id=UhgPAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA35
1)
80. Asger Aaboe (1997). Episodes from the
early history of mathematics (https://book
s.google.com/books?id=5wGzF0wPFYgC
&pg=PA51) . Mathematical Association of
America. p. 51. ISBN 0-88385-613-1. "...it
is not until Euclid that we find a logical
sequence of general theorems with proper
proofs."

81. Robert P. Crease (2008). The great

equations: breakthroughs in science from
Pythagoras to Heisenberg (https://archive.
org/details/greatequationsbr0000crea/pa
ge/25) . W W Norton & Co. p. 25 (https://a
rchive.org/details/greatequationsbr0000c
rea/page/25) . ISBN 978-0-393-06204-5.
82. A rather extensive discussion of the
origins of the various texts in the Zhou Bi
is provided by Christopher Cullen (2007).
Astronomy and Mathematics in Ancient
China: The 'Zhou Bi Suan Jing' (https://boo
ks.google.com/books?id=U9E88abLP10C
&q=to+datable++events+%22relate+the+
material%22&pg=PA139) . Cambridge
University Press. pp. 139 ff. ISBN 978-0-
521-03537-8.
83. This work is a compilation of 246
problems, some of which survived the
book burning of 213 BC, and was put in
final form before 100 AD. It was
extensively commented upon by Liu Hui in
263 AD. Philip D. Straffin Jr. (2004). "Liu
Hui and the first golden age of Chinese
mathematics" (https://books.google.com/
books?id=BKRE5AjRM3AC&pg=PA69) . In
Marlow Anderson; Victor J. Katz; Robin J.
Wilson (eds.). Sherlock Holmes in
Babylon: and other tales of mathematical
history. Mathematical Association of
America. pp. 69 ff. ISBN 0-88385-546-1.
See particularly §3: Nine chapters on the
mathematical art, pp. 71 ff.
84. Kangshen Shen; John N. Crossley;
Anthony Wah-Cheung Lun (1999). The
nine chapters on the mathematical art:
companion and commentary (https://book
s.google.com/books?id=eiTJHRGTG6YC&
pg=PA488) . Oxford University Press.
p. 488. ISBN 0-19-853936-3.

85. In particular, Li Jimin; see Centaurus,

Volume 39 (https://books.google.com/bo
oks?id=UJlFAAAAYAAJ&q=%22Shang+Ga
o+Theorem%22) . Copenhagen:
Munksgaard. 1997. pp. 193, 205.
86. Chen, Cheng-Yih (1996). "§3.3.4 Chén Zǐ's
formula and the Chóng-Chã method;
Figure 40" (https://books.google.com/boo
ks?id=2Wxj0SW9hBgC&pg=PA139) . Early
Chinese work in natural science: a re-
examination of the physics of motion,
acoustics, astronomy and scientific
thoughts. Hong Kong University Press.
p. 142. ISBN 962-209-385-X.

87. Wen-tsün Wu (2008). "The Gougu

theorem" (https://books.google.com/book
s?id=xV4lECaKDzwC&pg=PA158) .
Selected works of Wen-tsün Wu. World
Scientific. p. 158. ISBN 978-981-279-107-
8.
Works cited

Bell, John L. (1999). The Art of the

Intelligible: An Elementary Survey of
Mathematics in its Conceptual Development
(http://publish.uwo.ca/~jbell/) . Kluwer.
ISBN 0-7923-5972-0.

Euclid (1956). The Thirteen Books of Euclid's

Elements, Translated from the Text of
Heiberg, with Introduction and Commentary.
Vol. 1 (Books I and II). Translated by Heath,
Thomas L. (Reprint of 2nd (1925) ed.). Dover.
On-line text at archive.org (https://archive.or
g/details/euclid_heath_2nd_ed)

Heath, Sir Thomas (1921). "The 'Theorem of

Pythagoras' " (https://books.google.com/boo
ks?id=h4JsAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA144) . A
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(Dover Publications, Inc. (1981) ed.).
Clarendon Press, Oxford. pp. 144 ff. ISBN 0-
486-24073-8.

Libeskind, Shlomo (2008). Euclidean and

transformational geometry: a deductive
inquiry (https://books.google.com/books?id=
6YUUeO-RjU0C&pg=PA41) . Jones & Bartlett
Learning. ISBN 978-0-7637-4366-6. This high-
school geometry text covers many of the
topics in this WP article.

Loomis, Elisha Scott (1940). The

Pythagorean Proposition (https://archive.or
g/details/pythagoreanpropo0000loom_b2m
3/) (2nd ed.). Ann Arbor, Michigan: Edwards
Brothers. ISBN 9780873530361. Reissued
1968 by the National Council of Teachers of
Mathematics. A lower-quality scan was
published online by the Education Resources
Information Center, ERIC ED037335 (http://w
ww.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED037335.pdf) .

Maor, Eli (2007). The Pythagorean Theorem:

A 4,000-Year History (https://books.google.c
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New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
ISBN 978-0-691-12526-8.

Neugebauer, Otto (1969). The exact sciences

in antiquity (https://books.google.com/book
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Courier Dover Publications. ISBN 0-486-
22332-9. OCLC 638685764 (https://www.wor
ldcat.org/oclc/638685764) .

Robson, Eleanor and Jacqueline Stedall, eds.,

The Oxford Handbook of the History of
Mathematics, Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 2009. pp. vii + 918. ISBN 978-0-19-
921312-2.

Stillwell, John (1989). Mathematics and Its

History (https://archive.org/details/mathema
ticsitshi0000stil) . Springer-Verlag. ISBN 0-
387-96981-0. Also ISBN 3-540-96981-0.

Swetz, Frank; Kao, T. I. (1977). Was

Pythagoras Chinese?: An Examination of
Right Triangle Theory in Ancient China (http
s://archive.org/details/waspythagoraschi000
0swet) . Pennsylvania State University Press.
ISBN 0-271-01238-2.

van der Waerden, Bartel Leendert (1983).

Geometry and Algebra in Ancient
Civilizations (https://archive.org/details/geo
metryalgebrai0000waer) . Springer. ISBN 3-
 540-12159-5. "Pythagorean triples
Babylonian scribes van der Waerden."

External links

Pythagorean theorem at ProofWiki

Euclid (1997) [c. 300 Wikime
dia
BC]. David E. Joyce
Commo
(ed.). Elements (http:// ns has
media
aleph0.clarku.edu/~djo
related
yce/java/elements/toc. to
Pythago
html) . Retrieved
rean
2006-08-30. In HTML theorem
.
with Java-based
interactive figures.
"Pythagorean theorem" (https://www.en
cyclopediaofmath.org/index.php?title=P
ythagorean_theorem) . Encyclopedia of
Mathematics. EMS Press. 2001 [1994].

History topic: Pythagoras's theorem in

Babylonian mathematics (http://www-gr
oups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/PrintH
T/Babylonian_Pythagoras.html)

Interactive links:
Interactive proof (http://www.sunsit
e.ubc.ca/LivingMathematics/V001
N01/UBCExamples/Pythagoras/pyt
hagoras.html) in Java of the
Pythagorean theorem
 Another interactive proof (http://ww
w.cut-the-knot.org/pythagoras/Peri
gal.shtml) in Java of the
Pythagorean theorem

Pythagorean theorem (http://www.

mathopenref.com/pythagorastheor
em.html) with interactive
animation

Animated, non-algebraic, and user-

paced (http://math.ucr.edu/~jdp/Re
lativity/Pythagorus.html)
Pythagorean theorem

Pythagorean theorem water demo (http

s://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAkMU
deB06o) on YouTube
 Pythagorean theorem (http://www.cut-th
e-knot.org/pythagoras/index.shtml)
(more than 70 proofs from cut-the-knot)

Weisstein, Eric W. "Pythagorean

theorem" (https://mathworld.wolfram.co
m/PythagoreanTheorem.html) .
MathWorld.

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"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
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