Albert Einstein is known as one of the world’s greatest minds, but did you know that he was dyslexic?
Some of the world’s greatest minds were dyslexic, including Albert Einstein, the world’s most influential scientist of the 20th century, arguably speaking.
While he excelled in physics and mathematics, Einstein was known to struggle with language from a young age.
While the term dyslexia was only coined a few years after Einstein was born, there are many clear-cut signs that he was dyslexic.
When it comes to the question ‘Was Albert Einstein dyslexic?’, this is one of the many interesting facts about one of the world’s greatest minds you might not have known. Check out our interesting facts about this and more below.
- Albert Einstein is known as one of the world’s greatest minds, but did you know that he was dyslexic?
- Our fun facts about the life of Albert Einstein:
- 10. Was Albert Einstein dyslexic? – simply put, yes
- 9. He failed his college entrance exam – even the greatest among us come up against struggles
- 8. He married his first cousin – a strange fact about Einstein
- 7. His brain was preserved for scientific study – taking the term ‘pick your brains’ to another level
- 6. He was a determined activist – peace, civil rights, and pacifism
- 5. He loved playing the violin – a passion
- 4. He renounced his German citizenship – even before the Nazi regime
- 3. FBI surveillance – keeping tabs on Einstein
- 2. He was offered the Israeli Presidency – which he politely declined
- 1. His final words are unknown – an unfortunate language barrier
- Notable mentions
- Your questions answered about the question, ‘Was Albert Einstein dyslexic?’
Our fun facts about the life of Albert Einstein:
- Albert Einstein is perhaps most famous for developing the theory of relativity.
- He was born in Württemberg, Germany and died in Princeton, New Jersey, USA.
- He won the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics.
- After reading the Critique of Pure Reason and the works of other philosophers, Kant became Einstein’s favourite author.
- Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Whoopi Goldberg, Steven Spielberg, Leonardo da Vinci, Keira Knightley, Pablo Picasso, Muhammad Ali, Tom Cruise, Jennifer Aniston, and John Lennon are a number of famous faces who are dyslexic.
10. Was Albert Einstein dyslexic? – simply put, yes
The concept of dyslexia, then known as ‘word blindness’, was first recognised by German physician Adolph Kussmaul in 1877. It was then, in 1887, that the word dyslexia was first coined by Rudolf Berlin, a German ophthalmologist.
While Einstein excelled at physics and mathematics from an early age, he had delayed speech and couldn’t speak fluently until he was six years old.
He struggled to verbalise his thoughts and ideas through the written word. He also struggled to read out loud, all clear signs of dyslexia.
As Einstein was born in 1879, the term dyslexia wouldn’t have been widely known, but all the signs now prove that he was dyslexic.
9. He failed his college entrance exam – even the greatest among us come up against struggles
If anyone is struggling with test failures, this one will certainly show you that acing your exams doesn’t equal success!
After leaving school in Munich, Albert Einstein took a test to get into college in Zurich, but he failed the entrance exam. While he passed the maths and science section of the paper, he failed the rest, including history, languages and geography.
RELATED: 20 inspiring Albert Einstein quotes on education
8. He married his first cousin – a strange fact about Einstein
One of the odder facts about Einstein you might not have known about Albert Einstein is that in 1919, he married his first cousin, Elsa Einstein Lowenthal. He married her in the same year that he divorced his first wife, Mileva Maric.
7. His brain was preserved for scientific study – taking the term ‘pick your brains’ to another level
After his death in 1955, Einstein’s brain was preserved, something that remained unknown until 1978. His brain became the subject of much research and speculation, including reports that he had no parietal operculum, something that has been widely disputed.
One thing they did find that was undisputed was that Albert Einstein’s brain had a higher number of glial cells, significantly higher in the parietal area.
6. He was a determined activist – peace, civil rights, and pacifism
Albert Einstein was an advocate for peace, pacifism, and civil rights. He was a member of the NAACP and the American Crusade Against Lynching (ACAL) and was known to use his platform to denounce racism in America.
5. He loved playing the violin – a passion
Einstein owned several violins throughout his lifetime and was said to be rarely seen without one. Apparently, he gave each of his violins the same affectionate nickname – Lina, short for violin.
While he wasn’t a decorated professional violinist, it was certainly one of his life’s passions. One of his violins sold for $516,500 at auction in 2018.
4. He renounced his German citizenship – even before the Nazi regime
At the age of 16, Einstein renounced his German citizenship and became stateless until he became a Swiss citizen in 1901.
His German citizenship was officially renounced later in life when Jews under the Nazi regime were facing violence and persecution.
3. FBI surveillance – keeping tabs on Einstein
When Einstein entered the United States in 1933, he was under constant surveillance by the FBI. Apparently, the FBI had over a 1,500-page file on him, which chronicled his daily life, movements and findings over the years.
2. He was offered the Israeli Presidency – which he politely declined
In 1952, despite not being an Israeli citizen, Einstein was asked to be the President of Israel by the first Prime Minister of the country, David Ben-Gurion.
On being asked, he said, “I am deeply moved by the offer from our State of Israel, and at once saddened and ashamed that I cannot accept it”.
1. His final words are unknown – an unfortunate language barrier
Apparently, Einstein’s very last words were uttered in German to a nurse who did not speak the language. As such, his final words will always remain a mystery.
Notable mentions
Lieserl Einstein: Lieserl Einstein was the “illegitimate” child of Albert Einstein and his first wife, Mileva Maric. Known widely as the “secret daughter”, she seemingly vanished from historical records, with no one even knowing about her existence until 1986.
The power of a compass: According to history, it was a compass that sparked Einstein’s interest in physics. When he was sick in bed at five years old, his father brought him a magnetic compass to play with.
When recalling this, he said, “I can still remember—or at least believe I can remember—that this experience made a deep and lasting impression upon me. Something deeply hidden had to be behind things”.
His first job: Einstein’s first job out of collect was that of a patent clerk at the Swiss Federal Office for Intellectual Property in Switzerland’s capital city, Bern.
Your questions answered about the question, ‘Was Albert Einstein dyslexic?’
In this section, we answer some of our readers’ most frequently asked questions, including some that appear often in online searches on the topic.
Was Albert Einstein diagnosed with Asperger’s?
While it will never truly be known, his high IQ combined with his character traits and behaviours, led many to believe that he was on the autism spectrum.
What presidents were dyslexic?
Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Woodrow Wilson, and John Fitzgerald Kennedy were among the presidents of the United States with dyslexia.
Is Bill Gates dyslexic?
There are many famous business people and entrepreneurs who are dyslexic, and Bill Gates is one of them.