Axiomatic geometry

Euclid took a more abstract approach in his Elements, one of the most influential books ever written. Euclid introduced certain axioms, or postulates, expressing primary or self-evident properties of points, lines, and planes. He proceeded to rigorously deduce other properties by mathematical reasoning. The characteristic feature of Euclid's approach to geometry was its rigor, and it has come to be known as axiomatic or synthetic geometry. At the start of the 19th century the discovery of non-Euclidean geometries by Gauss, Lobachevsky, Bolyai, and others led to a revival of interest, and in the 20th century David Hilbert employed axiomatic reasoning in an attempt to provide a modern foundation of geometry.