In ancient Greece, mathematicians began to delve deeply into geometry, attempting to understand and explain the properties of various shapes and spaces. In this process, the rectangle, as one of the basic geometric shapes, naturally attracted their attention.

It is speculated that the earliest proposal of the formula for calculating the area of a rectangle might have come from the ancient Greek mathematician Pythagoras or his school. They discovered that by continuously dividing the rectangle into smaller rectangles and summing up the areas of these smaller rectangles, they could eventually obtain the area of the original rectangle. This method, known as “infinite summation,” was an important thinking method in ancient Greek mathematics. This method not only made it possible to calculate the area of a rectangle, but also laid the foundation for the later development of calculus.

However, there is also a view that the explicit proposal of the formula for calculating the area of a rectangle might be attributed to another ancient Greek mathematician, Euclid. In his work “Elements,” Euclid elaborated on the definition and properties of rectangles and gave the calculation method for the area, which is the length of the base multiplied by the height. This formula is concise and easy to understand and apply, so it has been widely accepted and used ever since.

Whether it was Pythagoras or Euclid, their research has made significant contributions to the formation and development of the formula for calculating the area of a rectangle. The explorations and discoveries of these mathematicians not only pushed forward the development of geometry but also provided valuable ideas and tools for later mathematical and scientific research.