History of Evolutionary Thought

  • 116

    Natural Theology

    Marcus Terentius Varro (116–27 BC)
    His branch of theology is based on reasoning and ordinary experiences.
  • Carolus Linneaus

    1707-1778
    Laid the foundations for modern day binomial nomenclature.
  • James Hutton

    1726-1797
    His work helped to establish the basis of modern geology.
  • Jean-Baptiste de Lamark

    1744-1829
    Early proponent of the idea that evolution occurred and proceeded in accordance with natural laws.
  • Thomas Malthus

    1766-1834
    He was known for his theories about population and its increase or decrease in response to various factors.
  • Georges Cuvier

    1769-1832
    He established the fields of comparative anatomy and paleontology through his work in comparing living animals with fossils. He is also well known for establishing extinction as a fact.
  • Charles Lyell

    1797-1875
    Best known as the author of Principles of Geology, which popularised James Hutton's concepts of uniformitarianism. He was also a close and influential friend of Charles Darwin.
  • Alfred Russel Wallace

    1823-1913
    Best known for independently proposing a theory of evolution due to natural selection that prompted Charles Darwin to publish his own theory.
  • Ernst Mayr

    104-2005
    He is sometimes known as the inventor of modern philosophy of biology, particularly the part related to evolutionary biology, which he distinguished from physics due to its introduction of natural history into science.
  • Aristotle

    Circa 338 - 322 B.C. One of Aristotle's greatest contributions was his philosophy, believing that logic is the systematic reasoning for the universe.