Astronomer Victor Knorre discovered main-belt asteroid 238 Hypatia on July 9, 1884, later named to honor the ancient philosopher and astronomer.
On 9 July 1884, German astronomer Victor Knorre, working at the Berlin Observatory, discovered a main-belt asteroid that would later be catalogued as 238 Hypatia. In choosing to name the celestial body after Hypatia of Alexandria, the astronomical community of the 19th century paid tribute to her enduring legacy as one of history's earliest documented female mathematicians and astronomers.
The naming reflects a broader tradition in astronomy of honoring historically significant figures through asteroid designations, and Hypatia's inclusion in this practice underscores how, even more than 1,400 years after her death, she remained recognized as a foundational figure in the history of science. Her contributions to preserving and transmitting classical astronomical and mathematical knowledge—including her work on Ptolemy's astronomical treatises—made her a fitting namesake for a celestial object.
This commemoration also marks one of the earliest modern scientific honors bestowed upon Hypatia, predating the 20th-century feminist recovery of her story that would bring her renewed cultural prominence. The asteroid continues to orbit the sun today, a small but permanent marker of her place in the history of astronomy.