Words and Numbers are at the Beginning...

On the Humanitarian Correlation of Philological and Mathematical Vectors of Knowledge

Abstract

The question of the correlation of mathematical and philological knowledge is considered: the place where numbers and words meet in the philosophical and historical aspect, the forms of their interaction, and the basic principles of mathematical and philological communication. What is a word in the mathematical sense and what is a number in the verbal design is a key theme that runs through all the author's thoughts. An attempt is made to build the contours of the parataxis of numbers and words, which would allow us to approach the mutual and effective hermeneutics of philologists and mathematicians. A brief historical overview of the relationship between words and numbers is made, covering the Ancient world, Antiquity, the middle Ages, and the Renaissance. Special attention is paid to the 16th century, which, in the author's opinion, is a turning point in the relations between Philology and mathematics: at this time, an explosive process of turning to the new begins in all scientific spheres, and an incredible thirst for discovery arises. If the middle Ages and the Renaissance fulfilled the task of restoring parity between Philology and mathematics, overcoming the Byzantine legacy of belittling the importance of numbers, the New time raised the status of mathematics in opposition to Philology. We note the coinciding rhythms of the development of Philology and mathematics, which at certain moments come out in a significant resonance. The historical and cognitive frontier that number and word reached simultaneously in the twentieth century has prepared a qualitatively different understanding of philological and mathematical relationships that can potentially translate into qualitatively new discoveries.