Carl Ferdinand Degen

Carl Ferdinand Degen (1 November 1766 to 8 April 1825) was a Danish mathematician whose most important contributions were within number theory, and who advised the young Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel in a decisive way. He has received much of the credit for introducing more modern and advanced mathematics into the Danish-Norwegian school system. Born in Braunschweig in Germany, he moved to Copenhagen with his family in 1771 when his father got a position in the Royal Danish Orchestra, and a fellowship let him attend school in Helsingør, from which he graduated in 1783 before continuing at the University of Copenhagen. Rather than follow the normal course, he read classical languages, philosophy, natural sciences and above all mathematics, and when the university announced its first prize essay contest in 1792 he won prizes in more than one field.