Kerim Erim (31 January 1894, Istanbul – 28 December 1952, Istanbul) was a Turkish mathematician who trained during the final years of the Ottoman Empire and played a key role in teaching research and institutional development in mathematics during the early years of the Republic of Türkiye. After completing his engineering education he pursued mathematical studies in Germany where he earned his doctorate and became the first Turkish scientist to obtain a PhD in mathematics in Türkiye. He taught at the Higher Engineering School and the Faculty of Science of Istanbul University, conducted research in analysis geometry and mechanics and delivered lectures and published works to introduce Einstein’s theory of relativity to Türkiye.

Born on 31 January 1894 in Istanbul his original name was Abdulkerim. His father was Mirliva Arif Pasha son of Buharalı Molla Ahmedzade and his mother was Naciye Hanım daughter of Kazan Şeyhü’l-müderrisîni Kerim Hazretzâde Ferik Abdürrahman Pasha.^【1】 He completed his primary education in Aleppo and continued his secondary education partly through private tutoring at home and partly in the early grades of the Hendese-i Mülkiye Mektebi in Istanbul.

He pursued higher education at the Higher Engineering School and graduated on 24 October 1914. After graduation he went to Germany to advance his studies in mathematics. He attended lectures at the University of Berlin and continued his studies at Friedrich-Alexander University in Erlangen. He completed his doctorate on 22 August 1919 with a thesis titled “Über die Trägheitsformen eines Modulsystems” under the supervision of Ernst S Fischer. With this work he became the first Turk to earn a doctorate in mathematics.^【2】 During his doctoral research he worked on the theory of invariants and polynomial equations and introduced the concept of the inertia form.

After graduating from the Higher Engineering School Kerim Erim served during the General War period from 1914 to 1917. After the war he returned to Germany to further his mathematical studies in Berlin and Erlangen and returned to Türkiye in 1919. In the same year he was appointed as an instructor at the Mühendis Mekteb-i Âlisi. Following the 1933 University Reform he was assigned to the Faculty of Science of Istanbul University and was appointed dean of the faculty that same year. In 1939 following the departure of Richard von Mises he assumed the directorship of the Institute of Mathematics. After 1946 he continued his work at Istanbul University serving again as dean of the Faculty of Science from 1948 to 1950 and remained active in academic life until his death in 1952.

At the Higher Engineering School Erim taught theoretical calculation analytic geometry cosmography trigonometry philosophy of science and mechanics and served as assistant instructor in courses on integral and differential calculus and mathematical mechanics. At Istanbul University he taught courses on integral and differential calculus and advanced mathematical analysis contributing significantly to the systematic development of mathematics education.

In 1921 he served on the Encümen-i Tedrisiye established to organize curricula and teaching staff. He played a central role in developing the research and publication activities of the Institute of Mathematics and in maintaining relations with international scientific communities. He was also among the founding members of the Turkish Mathematical Society established in 1948 and the Turkish Physical Society established in 1950.

He served on the editorial board of the Mühendis Mektebi Mecmuası which resumed publication in 1927.^【3】

He participated as a member of the Special Section for Mathematical Sciences at the First Turkish Language Congress held from 26 September to 5 October 1932 and contributed to the Turkish translation of 566 terms in the fields of calculation geometry algebra and trigonometry. In 1937 he was invited to attend meetings of the Dilişleri Encümeni in Ankara and worked on the commission established that year to determine the science curriculum for middle and high schools. Together with Ali Yar he prepared the textbook Geometri III for final-year high school students.

In 1948 he initiated efforts to host the 1952 International Congress of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics in Istanbul and assumed responsibility for organizing the 8th International Congress of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics held in Istanbul from 20 to 28 August 1952.

Kerim Erim was among the earliest scientists to promote and discuss Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity in Türkiye. In 1920 he delivered lectures on the theory at the Higher Teachers School and at conferences organized by the Ottoman Society of Engineers and Architects. These initiatives are regarded as among the first efforts to introduce the theory to the scientific community in Türkiye.^【4】

Between 1925 and 1926 he published a series of articles in the journal Fen Âlemi explaining the scientific foundations historical background and the mechanical and electrodynamical debates that laid the groundwork for the theory of relativity. He examined concepts such as time space principle of relativity and Lorentz transformations within a technical framework.

Kerim Erim published his work in mathematics and mechanics in the form of articles conference papers and textbooks. His doctoral thesis which focused on the concept of the inertia form within the context of module systems and the theory of invariants was presented as a paper at the International Congress of Mathematicians in Bologna in 1928 and subsequently published.

Between 1939 and 1952 he published three articles on the Stieltjes integral. He extended A H Copeland’s definition for functions of one variable to two and three dimensions and later to n dimensions.

He published numerous articles in the Fen Fakültesi Mecmuası and Mühendis Mektebi Mecmuası. He also translated works by scientists such as A E H Love Levi Civita Theodor Pöschl Richard von Mises and Theodore von Karman. Together with Mehmet Refik Fenmen he translated Max Planck’s lecture Das Wesen des Lichts from German into French and published it in Paris in 1927. In 1930 he published his impressions of a meeting with Einstein in Berlin under the title “Einstein ile Bir Saat” in the Mühendis Mektebi Mecmuası.

For teaching purposes he authored the textbooks Mekanik (1926) Nazarî Hesap (1931) and Analiz Dersleri – Diferansiyel and İntegral Hesap (1940; 2nd edition 1949).

Kerim Erim died in Istanbul on 28 December 1952 and was buried at Edirnekapı Şehitliği. In recognition of his contributions and institutional achievements in mathematics in Türkiye he was awarded the TÜBİTAK Service Award in the field of basic sciences in 1977 twenty-five years after his death.^【5】