O Math Day is a date that has long been informally commemorated by the Brazilian Society of Mathematics Education (SBEM). This celebration is held every May 6th as a tribute to Brazilian mathematician, writer and educator Júlio César de Mello e Souza, better known as Malba Tahan.
Read too: September 8 – World Literacy Day
Origin of National Mathematics Day
At the national level, the then deputy Raquel Teixeira was responsible for presenting a bill, on May 5, 2004, to establish the National Mathematics Day. The aim was for the Ministry of Education and Culture to encourage cultural and educational activities on that date. Raquel's proposal determined a time to reflect math education, encouraging teachers and students to cultivate culture and knowledge.
Only on June 26, 2013 the President of the Republic, Dilma Rousseff, sanctioned the law No. 12,835, which officially instituted the National Mathematics Day, which should be celebrated annually throughout the national territory on May 6th.
See too: March 15 - School Day
Do not stop now... There's more after the advertising ;)
Why is National Mathematics Day celebrated on May 6th?
But what led to the choice of this date? This question is easily answered by knowing the story of Malba Tahan. Born on May 6, 1895, in Rio de Janeiro, Júlio César de Mello e Souza (Malba Tahan) started teaching at 18 years old. He later graduated in Civil Engineering, but he never practiced this profession. very in love with math and through writing, Julius, who liked to tell stories, began to involve mathematics in his plots.
In 1918 he took five of his Tales to a Rio newspaper, where he worked. As there was no interest in his productions, he signed the short stories as R. S. Slade, a pseudonym for a fictional American author. Only after this new authorship was he able to see one of his short stories published in the newspaper.
Like Julio was an admirer of Arab culture, he started to include her in his productions and even signed his works as Ali Iezid Izz-Edim Ibn Salim Hank Malba Tahan, an Arab. To lend credibility to his pseudonym, he wrote a fake biography in which he attested that Malba Tahan was an admirable writer and had a great life story. After having several short stories published under this pseudonym, he managed to launch, in 1925, his first mathematical book: Tales of Malba Tahan.
The fame achieved by his revolutionary productions allowed Julius Caesar to become known as the true author of the book in the year 1933. However, as the pseudonym became larger, he never failed to sign the Arabic name and even received an authorization to Getulio Vargas so that it would appear next to his name, on his identity card, the pseudonym "Malba Tahan".
Over his 79 years, Malba Tahan published 120 books, 51 of which focused on Mathematics. In these works, she was able to convey the mathematical content in an enveloping sphere that presented puzzles and fantasies, which became a fun and exciting adventure. By this differentiated way of writing, until the date of his death, he had already sold more than a million books. His most famous book, “The man who calculated”, became a best-seller that even today attracts new generations.
By Amanda Gonçalves
Math teacher
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
RIBEIRO, Amanda Gonçalves. "May 6th — National Mathematics Day"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/datas-comemorativas/dia-nacional-matematica.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
