Photo: Andreu Veà, WiWiW.org / CC BY-SA 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
Raymond Tomlinson was born on April 23, 1941 in Amsterdam, New York, United States. Raymond Tomlinson was credited as a programmer, patent inventor and computer scientist. Death is recorded on March 5, 2016, at the age of 74. Listed accolades include Princess of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research (2009), Eduard-Rhein Cultural Award (2011), Internet Hall of Fame (2012) and 1 more. Notable works include email, TENEX and @.
My Take
I quietly thank Ray Tomlinson almost every day. Born in Amsterdam, New York in 1941, this computer scientist wrote the first email program on ARPANET in 1971, the first system that could send mail between users on different hosts. He also made the inspired choice to use the @ symbol to separate the user from the machine, a decision now woven into billions of addresses. What moves me is how unassuming the genius was: world-changing infrastructure born from a small, elegant fix. His Internet Hall of Fame induction was richly deserved, and he reminds me that the deepest impact often comes from the quietest engineers.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Raymond Tomlinson
- Name (Japanese)
- レイ・トムリンソン
- Reading
- れい・とむりんそん
- Born
- April 23, 1941 – March 5, 2016
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Taurus / Snake
- Origin
- Amsterdam, New York, United States
- Occupation
- programmer / inventor / patent inventor / computer scientist / designer
2. Background
Awards & achievements
- 2009 Princess of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research
- 2011 Eduard-Rhein Cultural Award
- 2012 Internet Hall of Fame
- 2004 IEEE Internet Award
3. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | — | ||
| Notable work | TENEX | — | |
| Notable work | @ | — |
4. Links
- Official sitehttp://openmap.bbn.com/~tomlinso/ray/home.html
- Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray%20Tomlinson
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%AC%E3%82%A4%E3%83%BB%E3%83%88%E3%83%A0%E3%83%AA%E3%83%B3%E3%82%BD%E3%83%B3
- Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q92631
5. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-23
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was Raymond Tomlinson born?
Born April 23, 1941.
When did Raymond Tomlinson die?
Died March 5, 2016, aged 74.
Where was Raymond Tomlinson from?
Raymond Tomlinson was from Amsterdam, New York, United States.
What did Raymond Tomlinson do?
Raymond Tomlinson worked as programmer, inventor, patent inventor, computer scientist, designer.
What was Raymond Tomlinson known for?
Notable works include email, TENEX, @.
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