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Heinrich Rickert

1863 – 1936

German philosopher

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About Heinrich Rickert

Lived 1863 – 1936 (aged 73). Heinrich Rickert was a German philosopher and university teacher.

Heinrich John Rickert (; ; 25 May 1863 – 25 July 1936) was a German philosopher, a leading neo-Kantian of the Baden school.

Life Rickert was born in Danzig, Prussia (now Gdańsk, Poland) to the journalist and later politician Heinrich Edwin Rickert and Annette née Stoddart. He was professor of philosophy at the University of Freiburg (1894–1915, succeeded by Edmund Husserl) and the University of Heidelberg (1915–1932, succeeding Wilhelm Windelband). He died in Heidelberg amid Nazi Germany.

Despite his earlier support for Jewish philosophers, Rickert later embraced National Socialism.

Philosophy Rickert is known for his discussion of a qualitative distinction between historical and scientific facts. He also argued (against Wilhelm Dilthey, Georg Simmel, and the anti-rationalist philosophers of life) that only someone who takes a purely theoretical standpoint can reflect on the world as a whole.

Charles R. Bambach writes:

In addition, Rickert's Die Grenzen der naturwissenschaftlichen Begriffsbildung was cited by the Kantian scholar Lewis White Beck as a major source of inspiration during his early studies as an undergraduate with Leroy Loemker.

Rickert and Windelband led the Baden school of neo-Kantians.

Works Zur Lehre von der Definition [On the Theory of Definition] (1888) (doctoral thesis). Center for Research libraries, crl.edu 2nd. ed., 1915. 3rd ed., 1929. Der Gegenstand der Erkenntnis: ein Beitrag zum Problem der philosophischen Transcendenz (1892). Google (UCal) 2nd ed., 1904: Der Gegenstand der Erkenntnis: Einführung in die Transzendentalphilosophie. Google (UMich) Google (NYPL) 2nd ed., 1913. The Limits of Concept Formation in Natural Science (1986). (Tr. Guy Oakes.) Fichtes Atheismusstreit und die kantische Philosophie (1899). Google (UCal) IA (UToronto) Kulturwissenschaft und Naturwissenschaft (1899). 6th/7th revised and expanded ed., 1926.

"Geschichtsphilosophie" in Die Philosophie im Beginn des zwanzigsten Jahrhunderts (1905). 2 volumes. Vol. 2, pp. 51–135 Die Probleme der Geschichtsphilosophie: eine Einführung, 3rd ed., 1924. New ed.: Celtis Verlag, Berlin 2013, Wilhelm Windelband (1915). Die Philosophie des Lebens: Darstellung und Kritik der philosophischen Modeströmungen unserer Zeit (1920). IA (UToronto) 2nd ed., 1922. Allgemeine Grundlegung der Philosophie (1921). [System der Philosophie vol. 1] Kant als Philosoph der modernen Kultur (1924). Über die Welt der Erfahrung (1927). Die Logik des Prädikats und das Problem der Ontologie (1930). Die Heidelberger Tradition in der Deutschen Philosophie (1931). Goethes Faust (1932). Grundprobleme der Philosophie: Methodologie, Ontologie, Anthropologie (1934). Unmittelbarkeit und Sinndeutung (1939).

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Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Education
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, University of Strasbourg
Employers
University of Freiburg, Heidelberg University
Also known as
Heinrich John Rickert

People in Heinrich Rickert's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Heinrich Rickert's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Heinrich Rickert?

German philosopher (1863-1936)

When was Heinrich Rickert born?

Heinrich Rickert was born on 25 May 1863 in Gdańsk.

When did Heinrich Rickert die?

Heinrich Rickert died on 25 July 1936 in Heidelberg.

What was Heinrich Rickert's occupation?

Heinrich Rickert was a philosopher and university teacher.

What nationality was Heinrich Rickert?

Heinrich Rickert was German.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Heinrich Rickert

· Wikidata: Q77012

· DBpedia: Heinrich Rickert

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Heinrich Rickert. https://biography.guide/heinrich-rickert/

MLA: "Heinrich Rickert." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/heinrich-rickert/.

Chicago: "Heinrich Rickert." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/heinrich-rickert/.

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