In this Very Short Introduction, Jacqueline Stedall explores the rich historical and cultural diversity of mathematical endeavour from the distant past to the present day, using illustrative case studies drawn from a range of times and places; including early imperial China, the medieval Islamic world, and nineteenth-century Britain-- Source other than Library of Congress.

1. Mathematics: myth and history -- 2. What is mathematics and who is a mathematician? -- 3. How are mathematical ideas disseminated? -- 4. Learning mathematics -- 5. Mathematical livelihoods -- 6. Getting inside mathematics -- 7. The evolving historiography of mathematics.