The Estonian Mathematical Society (Estonian: , EMS) is a

mathematical society This article provides a list of mathematical societies. International * African Mathematical Union * Association for Women in Mathematics * Circolo Matematico di Palermo * European Mathematical Society * European Women in Mathematics * Foundat ...

founded in Estonia in February 1926. The EMS is based in

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

, and is a founding member of the

European Mathematical Society The European Mathematical Society (EMS) is a European organization dedicated to the development of mathematics in Europe. Its members are different mathematical societies in Europe, academic institutions and individual mathematicians. The curren ...

. It is recognised by the

International Mathematical Union The International Mathematical Union (IMU) is an international organization devoted to international cooperation in the field of mathematics across the world. It is a member of the International Science Council (ISC) and supports the International ...

History

The predecessor of the Estonian Mathematical Society was the Academic Mathematical Society (Estonian: ), which was founded in Tartu on 23 February 1926. In 1940 Estonia was annexed by the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and became the

Estonian SSR The Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, (abbreviated Estonian SSR, Soviet Estonia, or simply Estonia ) was an administrative subunit ( union republic) of the former Soviet Union (USSR), covering the occupied and annexed territory of Estonia ...

. The Academic Mathematical Society was forced to cease its activities, and had its last meeting in November 1940.

Hans Kruus Hans Johannes Kruus (22 October 1891 – 30 June 1976) was an Estonian historian, academic and politician. As well as sitting in the Estonian parliament and the Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR, he was Deputy Prime Minister of Estonia in 1940 ...

, who was at the time rector of the

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; ; ) is a public research university located in the city of Tartu, Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is also the largest and oldest university in the country.

, recommended that the society be dissolved, but this was prevented from happening when

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...

(and the subsequent occupation of Estonia by the Nazis) shifted the priorities of the Soviet Union. Society president repeatedly tried to restart the activities of the society during the war, but was unsuccessful. When the Second World War ended scientific societies continued to be banned in Estonia. An attempt to restart the society in 1983 was rejected by the

Communist Party of Estonia The Communist Party of Estonia (, abbreviated EKP; in Russian: Коммунистическая партия Эстонии) was a regional branch of the CPSU, Soviet communist party (CPSU) which in 1920–1940 operated illegally in Estonia an ...

. In 1987 the Soviet Union introduced ''

perestroika ''Perestroika'' ( ; rus, перестройка, r=perestrojka, p=pʲɪrʲɪˈstrojkə, a=ru-perestroika.ogg, links=no) was a political reform movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during the late 1980s, widely associ ...

'', which allowed for more political independence. On 17 September 1987 the Academic Mathematical Society held its re-opening conference, and its name was changed to the Estonian Mathematical Society. In April 1988 a Computer Science branch of the EMS was established. It was disbanded in 1993 following the formation of the Estonian Society of Informatics.

Awards

Arnold Humal Prize

The Estonian Mathematical Society annually awards the Arnold Humal Prize to an Estonian mathematician under the age of 30. Because obtained his PhD at the age of 26, the prize decides between equal candidates in favour of the younger. Past winners of the prize are: *2007 – Kristel Mikkor *2009 – Helle Visk *2010 – Evely Leetma *2011 – Daria Gordon *2012 – Indrek Zolk *2013 – Aleksei Lissitsin *2014 – Erge Ideon *2016 – Johann Langemets *2017 – Silja Veidenberg *2019 – Ülo Reimaa *2021 – Rihhard Nadel *2023 – Kristo Väljako and Andre Ostrak

Other awards

The EMS Publication Award (Estonian: ) is awarded to a young mathematician with a connection to Estonia for a publication in an international mathematical journal. The Professor Gerhard Rägo Memorial Medal has since 1990 been awarded for improving the teaching of mathematics in Estonian schools. The Student Prize of the EMS (Estonian: ) is a scholarship awarded annually to recognise "meaningful results obtained by students in their undergraduate studies in mathematics and applications of mathematics." The Olaf Prinitsa Prize recognises a student who has obtained a master's degree in mathematics education.

Presidents

Past presidents of the Estonian Mathematical Society are: * (1926–1927) * Jüri Nuut (1927–1932) * Edgar Krahn (1932–1936) * (1936–1940) *

Ülo Lumiste Ülo Lumiste (30 June 1929 Vändra – 20 November 2017) was an Estonian mathematician. In 1952 he graduated from the University of Tartu in mathematics. In 1968 he defended his doctoral thesis at Kazan University. Since 1959 he taught at the Uni ...

(1987–1993) * (1994–2003) * (2003–2009) *Raul Kangro (elected 2009) *Valdis Laan (2015–2018) * (2018−2022) *Jüri Lember (2021–present)

References

External links

The old website of the EMSThe Estonian Mathematical Society
at MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive {{Authority control Mathematical societies Scientific organizations established in 1926 Scientific organizations based in Estonia 1926 establishments in Estonia