Stephen Hawking Family Tree: The Story Behind A Brief History of Time

Sir Stephen William Hawking, born 8 January 1942 in Oxford, England, was the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge (1979–2009) — author of A Brief History of Time (1988) and one of the most-famous physicists of the late 20th century, despite suffering from ALS from age 21. He died 14 March 2018 at age 76.

The Family's Roots: An Oxford Academic Family

The Hawking family is an English academic family from Oxford with deep Yorkshire roots.

His Parents

Father: Frank Hawking (1905–1986) — biologist; research parasitologist; specialised in tropical diseases.

Mother: Isobel Eileen Hawking (née Walker; 1915–2013) — Scottish; secretary and political activist.

His Siblings

Mary Hawking (1943–2015) — Stephen's younger sister; physician.

Philippa Hawking, born 1947 — younger sister.

Edward Frank David Hawking (1955–2003) — adopted brother; school teacher.

His First Wife: Jane Wilde

Jane Beryl Wilde Hawking married Stephen in July 1965 when he was already showing ALS symptoms. The marriage lasted 27 years (separated 1990; divorced 1995). Her memoir Travelling to Infinity became the film The Theory of Everything (2014).

Their Children

Robert George Hawking, born May 1967 — son; software engineer (Microsoft).

Lucy Hawking, born November 1970 — daughter; journalist and children's book author (co-authored space books with her father).

Timothy Hawking, born April 1979 — son; marketing executive.

His Second Wife: Elaine Mason

Elaine Mason — Stephen's nurse from the late 1980s; married him in September 1995. Divorced 2006. The marriage was widely reported as troubled.

The Hawking Family Tree at a Glance

Family Origins: Oxford academic family; Yorkshire heritage.

Father: Frank Hawking (1905–1986) — parasitologist biologist.

Mother: Isobel Walker Hawking (1915–2013) — Scottish secretary; activist.

Siblings: Mary (1943–2015) — physician; Philippa (b. 1947); Edward (1955–2003, adopted) — teacher.

First Wife: Jane Wilde (m. July 1965, sep. 1990, div. 1995).

Children with Jane: Robert (b. May 1967) — software engineer; Lucy (b. November 1970) — children's writer; Timothy (b. April 1979) — marketing.

Second Wife: Elaine Mason (m. September 1995, div. 2006).

Sir Stephen Hawking:

  • Born 8 January 1942, Oxford (300th anniversary of Galileo's death)
  • St Albans School; University College Oxford (BA Natural Sciences 1962)
  • Cambridge (PhD Applied Mathematics & Theoretical Physics 1966)
  • ALS diagnosis: 1963, at age 21 (given 2 years to live; survived 55 more)
  • Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, Cambridge: 1979–2009
  • A Brief History of Time: 1988 — 25+ million copies sold
  • Discovered Hawking radiation (1974) — black-hole evaporation
  • Companion of Honour (1989); Presidential Medal of Freedom (2009)
  • Died 14 March 2018, Cambridge — buried at Westminster Abbey near Newton and Darwin

What the Hawking Family Story Teaches Us

A parasitologist father. A Scottish activist mother. Three siblings, one of them adopted. A 27-year first marriage that produced three children. A second marriage of 11 years that ended in divorce. An ALS diagnosis at 21 with a 2-year prognosis that became a 55-year career.

For every family — large or small, famous or otherwise — the Hawking story carries the same lesson. Some careers extend a lifetime that medicine predicted would be short. Stephen's ALS prognosis vs his 55-year career is on the family record alongside every book. Write down what the doctors said. Sometimes the family record proves them wrong.

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