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How Computing Was Built
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Pioneer

Tony Hoare

Also Known As C. A. R. Hoare
Theory of Computation

Sir Charles Antony Richard Hoare is a British computer scientist whose foundational contributions run through programming languages, algorithms, operating systems, formal verification and concurrent computing. He developed quicksort in 1959 to 1960 and Hoare logic for verifying program correctness, and won the 1980 Turing Award. He later called his 1965 invention of the null reference his billion dollar mistake, an honest accounting this atlas quotes with approval. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Birth Year
1934 1
Born 11 January 1934.
Birth Date
1934-01-11 2
Death Year
2026 2
Death Date
2026-03-05 2
Nationality
British 1
Connections

Associated With

Formal Methods, Fields

Tony Hoare's 1969 paper An Axiomatic Basis for Computer Programming introduced Hoare logic, a foundational formal system for reasoning about program correctness, already cited on this field's own origin-year fact.

Source Wikipedia: Tony Hoare

In Field

Algorithms and Complexity Theory, Fields

Invented

Quicksort, Concepts
Source Wikipedia: Quicksort
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Tony Hoare
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Opening and Research and Career sections
    Hoare developed the sorting algorithm quicksort in 1959-1960. He developed Hoare logic, an axiomatic basis for verifying program correctness.
  • Opening section
    Sir Charles Antony Richard Hoare
  • Associated With: Formal Methods
View the Source
2. Tony Hoare (Wikidata)
  • P569 (date of birth): 1934-01-11
    1934-01-11
  • Wikidata P166: Faraday Medal
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Faraday Medal.
  • Wikidata P166: Friedrich L. Bauer Prize
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Friedrich L. Bauer Prize.
  • Wikidata P166: Fellow of the Royal Society
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Fellow of the Royal Society.
  • Wikidata P166: Harry H. Goode Memorial Award
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Harry H. Goode Memorial Award.
  • Wikidata P166: Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
  • Wikidata P166: Turing Award
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Turing Award.
  • Wikidata P166: ACM Fellow
    Wikidata P166 (award received): ACM Fellow.
  • Wikidata P166: Computer History Museum Fellow
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Computer History Museum Fellow.
  • Wikidata P166: Programming Languages Achievement Award
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Programming Languages Achievement Award.
  • Wikidata P166: Computer Pioneer Award
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Computer Pioneer Award.
  • Wikidata P166: honorary doctor of the University of Madrid Complutense
    Wikidata P166 (award received): honorary doctor of the University of Madrid Complutense.
  • Wikidata P166: Fellow of the British Computer Society
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Fellow of the British Computer Society.
  • Wikidata P166: Kyoto Prize in Advanced Technology
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Kyoto Prize in Advanced Technology.
  • Wikidata P166: IEEE John von Neumann Medal
    Wikidata P166 (award received): IEEE John von Neumann Medal.
  • Wikidata P166: Knight Bachelor
    Wikidata P166 (award received): Knight Bachelor.
  • P570 (date of death): year 2026
    2026
  • P570 (date of death): 2026-03-05
    2026-03-05
View the Source
Wikipedia: Quicksort
Wikimedia FoundationInvented: Quicksort, History section
Quote, Invented: Quicksort, History section
The quicksort algorithm was developed in 1959 by Tony Hoare while he was a visiting student at Moscow State University.
View the Source
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