William Kingdon Clifford

English mathematician and philosopher
Person human Q323228
William Kingdon Clifford
William Kingdon Clifford (editors Leslie Stephen and Fredick Pollock) · Public Domain · Wikimedia
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William Kingdon Clifford

Summary

William Kingdon Clifford is a human[1]. He was born in Exeter[2]. He was born on May 4, 1845[3]. He passed away in Madeira Island[4]. He died on March 3, 1879[5]. He worked as a mathematician[6], philosopher[7], and university teacher[8]. He ranks in the top 0.72% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (126 views/month, #7,175 of 1,000,298).[9]

Key Facts

  • William Kingdon Clifford was born in Exeter[2].
  • William Kingdon Clifford died in Madeira Island[4].
  • William Kingdon Clifford was born on May 4, 1845[3].
  • William Kingdon Clifford died on March 3, 1879[5].
  • Burial took place at Highgate Cemetery[10].
  • Burial took place at Grave of William Kingdon Clifford[11].
  • William Kingdon Clifford's father was William Clifford[12].
  • William Kingdon Clifford's mother was Frances Kingdon[13].
  • Among William Kingdon Clifford's spouses was Lucy Clifford[14].
  • A child of William Kingdon Clifford was Ethel Clifford[15].
  • William Kingdon Clifford held citizenship in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland[16].
  • William Kingdon Clifford worked as a mathematician[6].
  • William Kingdon Clifford worked as a philosopher[7].
  • William Kingdon Clifford's professions included university teacher[8].
  • William Kingdon Clifford's field of work was algebra[17].
  • William Kingdon Clifford was employed by University College London[18].
  • William Kingdon Clifford was employed by Trinity College[19].
  • William Kingdon Clifford's education included a stint at Trinity College[20].
  • William Kingdon Clifford was educated at King's College London[21].
  • William Kingdon Clifford was educated at University of Cambridge[22].
  • A notable work attributed to William Kingdon Clifford is Clifford algebra[23].
  • A notable work attributed to William Kingdon Clifford is Clifford's circle theorems[24].
  • A notable work attributed to William Kingdon Clifford is Clifford's theorem on special divisors[25].
  • A notable work attributed to William Kingdon Clifford is Clifford torus[26].
  • A notable work attributed to William Kingdon Clifford is Clifford parallel[27].

Body

Origins and Family

William Kingdon Clifford's place of birth was Exeter[2]. He was born on May 4, 1845[3]. His father was William Clifford[12]. His mother was Frances Kingdon[13].

Education

Educated at Trinity College[20], a college of the University of Cambridge[28], in United Kingdom[29], founded in 1546[30], headquartered in Cambridge[31]; King's College London[21], a public research university[32], in United Kingdom[33], founded in 1829[34], headquartered in London[35]; and University of Cambridge[22], a collegiate university[36], in United Kingdom[37], founded in 1209[38], headquartered in Cambridge[39]. William Kingdon Clifford studied under Percival Frost[40].

Career and Affiliations

Recorded occupations include mathematician[6], philosopher[7], and university teacher[8]. William Kingdon Clifford's field of work was algebra[17]. Employers include University College London[18], a university college[41], in United Kingdom[42], founded in 1826[43], headquartered in UCL Main Building[44] and Trinity College[19], a college of the University of Cambridge[45], in United Kingdom[46], founded in 1546[47], headquartered in Cambridge[48].

Works and Contributions

Notable works include Clifford algebra[23], a mathematical concept[49]; Clifford's circle theorems[24], a theorem[50]; Clifford's theorem on special divisors[25], a theorem[51]; Clifford torus[26], a mathematical concept[52]; Clifford parallel[27], a mathematical concept[53]; and Clifford–Klein form[54], a mathematical concept[55]. Things named for William Kingdon Clifford include Clifford algebra[56], a mathematical concept[57]; Clifford's circle theorems[58], a theorem[59]; and William Kingdon Clifford Prize[60], a science award[61], founded in 2011[62].

Recognition

William Kingdon Clifford received the Fellow of the Royal Society[63].

Personal Life

Among William Kingdon Clifford's spouses was Lucy Clifford[14]. A child of him was Ethel Clifford[15]. His religion is recorded as atheism[64].

Death and Burial

William Kingdon Clifford died on March 3, 1879[5]. He died in Madeira Island[4]. The cause of death was tuberculosis[65]. Recorded place of burial include Highgate Cemetery[10] and Grave of him[11].

Why It Matters

William Kingdon Clifford ranks in the top 0.72% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (126 views/month, #7,175 of 1,000,298).[9] He has Wikipedia articles in 24 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.[66] He is known by 18 alternative names across languages and contexts.[67]

He has been cited as an influence by Robert Tucker[68], a mathematician[69], 1832–1905[70], of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland[71].

Entities named for him include Clifford algebra[56], a mathematical concept[57]; Clifford's circle theorems[58], a theorem[59]; and William Kingdon Clifford Prize[60], a science award[61], founded in 2011[62].

FAQs

Where was William Kingdon Clifford born?

William Kingdon Clifford was born in Exeter[2].

Where did William Kingdon Clifford die?

William Kingdon Clifford died in Madeira Island[4].

Who were William Kingdon Clifford's parents?

William Kingdon Clifford's father was William Clifford[12]. William Kingdon Clifford's mother was Frances Kingdon[13].

Who was William Kingdon Clifford married to?

William Kingdon Clifford's spouses include Lucy Clifford[14].

What did William Kingdon Clifford do for work?

William Kingdon Clifford worked as mathematician[6], philosopher[7], and university teacher[8].

Where did William Kingdon Clifford go to school?

William Kingdon Clifford was educated at Trinity College[20], King's College London[21], and University of Cambridge[22].

What awards did William Kingdon Clifford receive?

Honors received include Fellow of the Royal Society[63].

Who did William Kingdon Clifford influence?

William Kingdon Clifford has been cited as an influence by Robert Tucker[68].

References

Programmatic citations — every numbered marker resolves to a verifiable graph row below.

Direct Wikidata claims

  1. [2] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  2. [4] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  3. [12] . Genealogics. wikidata.org.
  4. [13] . Genealogics. wikidata.org.
  5. [14] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  6. [16] . wikidata.org.
  7. [15] . The Peerage. wikidata.org.
  8. [20] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  9. [21] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  10. [22] . Mathematics Genealogy Project. wikidata.org.
  11. [17] . wikidata.org.
  12. [6] . wikidata.org.
  13. [7] . wikidata.org.
  14. [8] . wikidata.org.
  15. [18] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  16. [19] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  17. [10] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  18. [11] . wikidata.org.
  19. [64] . wikidata.org.
  20. [63] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.
  21. [65] . google.cat. google.cat. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  22. [3] . BnF authorities. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  23. [5] . BnF authorities. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  24. [23] . wikidata.org.
  25. [24] . wikidata.org.
  26. [25] . wikidata.org.
  27. [26] . wikidata.org.
  28. [27] . wikidata.org.
  29. [54] . wikidata.org.
  30. [40] . MacTutor History of Mathematics archive. wikidata.org.

Inverse relationships (entities pointing at this one)

  1. [68] . wikidata.org. → on this site
  2. [56] . wikidata.org. → on this site
  3. [58] . wikidata.org. → on this site
  4. [60] . wikidata.org. → on this site

Inline context (facts about related entities)

  1. [28] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  2. [29] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  3. [30] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  4. [31] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  5. [32] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  6. [33] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  7. [34] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  8. [35] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  9. [36] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  10. [37] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  11. [38] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  12. [39] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  13. [41] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  14. [42] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  15. [43] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  16. [44] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  17. [45] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  18. [46] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  19. [47] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  20. [48] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  21. [49] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  22. [50] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  23. [51] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  24. [52] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  25. [53] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  26. [55] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  27. [69] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  28. [70] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  29. [71] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  30. [57] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  31. [59] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  32. [61] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  33. [62] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site

Class ancestry

  1. [1] . Wikidata. wikidata.org.

Aggregate / graph-position facts

  1. [9] . Wikimedia Foundation. dumps.wikimedia.org.
  2. [66] . Wikidata sitelinks. wikidata.org.
  3. [67] . Wikidata aliases. wikidata.org.

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APA 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph. (2026). William Kingdon Clifford. Retrieved April 10, 2026, from https://4ort.xyz/entity/william-kingdon-clifford
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BibTeX @misc{4ortxyz_william-kingdon-clifford_2026, author = {{4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph}}, title = {{William Kingdon Clifford}}, year = {2026}, url = {https://4ort.xyz/entity/william-kingdon-clifford}, note = {Accessed: 2026-04-10}}
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Edit History

Rolling log of changes to this entity's Wikidata record. Values shown reflect the current state of each edited property — follow the history link to see the precise diff for any edit.

  1. 16d ago · Quesotiotyo · 2026-05-20 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Notable work Clifford algebra, Clifford's circle theorems, Clifford's theorem on special divisors +7
    Given name William, Kingdon
    Field of work algebra
    Instance of human
    + 41 other properties edited (see Wikidata diff for full list)
    "/* wbcreateclaim-create:1| */ [[Property:P14397]]: 962, [[:toollabs:quickstatements/#/batch/258229|batch #258229]]"
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