site.bta130th Birth Anniversary of Mathematician Nikola Obreshkov

Friday marks the 130th birth anniversary of Bulgarian mathematician and politician Nikola Obreshkov. 

Obreshkov was born in Varna on March 6, 1896. He graduated with honours in mathematics and physics from Sofia University in 1920 and, in the same year, was appointed an assistant professor in differential and integral calculus. By 1922, eight of his studies had already been published. His work gained recognition and he became an associate professor in higher algebra.

From 1922 to 1923, he undertook a specialization in Berlin, where he was admitted as a member of the Berlin Mathematical Society. Soon after returning home, on March 25, 1925, he became an associate professor of higher algebra. In 1928, at just 32, with 37 published works, he was promoted to full professor and head of the department of higher algebra and probability theory. He was awarded the title of Doctor of Mathematics by University of Palermo in 1932 and Doctor of Science by Sorbonne University in 1933. Throughout his teaching career, he published research every year and delivered papers at mathematics congresses and conferences.

In 1935-1936, he served as Dean of the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics at the university. In 1945, Obreshkov was elected an academician. He served as Director of the Institute of Mathematics at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) from 1951 to 1963.

From March 15, 1962 to August 11, 1963, he was an MP in the 4th National Assembly.

His works were published by BAS and by the academies of sciences in Moscow, Paris, Berlin and Rome, as well as in leading scientific journals in the USSR, Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Japan and Hungary.

Obreshkov's global reputation made him a sought-after lecturer at a number of universities. He was an invited speaker at the World Congresses of Mathematicians (Oslo, 1936; Edinburgh, 1958); the First Congress of Slav Mathematicians (Warsaw, 1929); the Congress of Balkan Mathematicians (Athens, 1935); the Congresses of Hungarian Mathematicians (Budapest, 1950 and 1960); the Conference on Probability and Statistics (Berlin, 1954); and the International Colloquium on Numerical Analysis (Dresden, 1955).

A large number of his scientific works were devoted to higher algebra. His research made a major contribution to the development of several areas of higher mathematics, especially the theory of the roots of equations and the zeros of polynomials. He also made a major contribution to number theory and probability theory. Among his most significant achievements was solving the problem of determining the exact value of the Borel constant. 

Over a teaching career spanning 43 years, he made a great contribution to the training of mathematicians in Bulgaria. His textbooks on algebra, analytic geometry, higher algebra, arithmetic, number theory, and probability theory went through many reprints.

Obreshkov died on August 11, 1963.