Frechet spaces have been studied since the days of Banach. These spaces, their inductive limits and their duals played a prominent role in the development of the theory of locally convex spaces. Also they are natural tools in many areas of real and complex analysis. The pioneering work of Grothendieck in the fifties has been one of the important sources of inspiration for research in the theory of Frechet spaces. A structure theory of nuclear Frechet spaces emerged and some important questions posed by Grothendieck were settled in the seventies. In particular, subspaces and quotient spaces of stable nuclear power series spaces were completely characterized. In the last years it has become increasingly clear that the methods used in the structure theory of nuclear Frechet spaces actually provide new insight to linear problems in diverse branches of analysis and lead to solutions of some classical problems. The unifying theme at our Workshop was the recent developments in the theory of the projective limit functor. This is appropriate because of the important role this theory had in the recent research. The main results of the structure theory of nuclear Frechet spaces can be formulated and proved within the framework of this theory. A major area of application of the theory of the projective limit functor is to decide when a linear operator is surjective and, if it is, to determine whether it has a continuous right inverse.

There is almost no field in Mathematics which does not use Mathe matical Analysis. Computer methods in Applied Mathematics, too, are often based on statements and procedures of Mathematical Analysis. An important part of Mathematical Analysis is Complex Analysis because it has many applications in various branches of Mathematics. Since the field of Complex Analysis and its applications is a focal point in the Vietnamese research programme, the Hanoi University of Technology organized an International Conference on Finite or Infinite Dimensional Complex Analysis and Applications which took place in Hanoi from August 8 - 12, 2001. This conference th was the 9 one in a series of conferences which take place alternately in China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam each year. The first one took place th at Pusan University in Korea in 1993. The preceding 8 conference was th held in Shandong in China in August 2000. The 9 conference of the was the first one which took place above mentioned series of conferences in Vietnam. Present trends in Complex Analysis reflected in the present volume are mainly concentrated in the following four research directions: 1 Value distribution theory (including meromorphic funtions, mero morphic mappings, as well as p-adic functions over fields of finite or zero characteristic) and its applications, 2 Holomorphic functions in several (finitely or infinitely many) com plex variables, 3 Clifford Analysis, i.e., complex methods in higher-dimensional real Euclidian spaces, 4 Generalized analytic functions."

'Et moi, ..., si j'avait su comment en reveni.r, One service mathematics has rendered the je n'y serais point aile.' human race. It has put common sense back Jules Verne where it belongs. on the topmost shelf next to the dusty canister labelled 'discarded non 111e series is divergent; therefore we may be sense'. Eric T. Bell able to do something with it. O. Heaviside Mathematics is a tool for thought. A highly necessary tool in a world where both feedback and non linearities abound. Similarly, all kinds of parts of mathematics serve as tools for other parts and for other sciences. Applying a simple rewriting rule to the quote on the right above one finds such statements as: 'One service topology has rendered mathematical physics .. .'; 'One service logic has rendered com puter science .. .'; 'One service category theory has rendered mathematics .. .'. All arguably true. And all statements obtainable this way form part of the raison d'etre of this series."

Harmonic maps are solutions to a natural geometrical variational prob lem. This notion grew out of essential notions in differential geometry, such as geodesics, minimal surfaces and harmonic functions. Harmonic maps are also closely related to holomorphic maps in several complex variables, to the theory of stochastic processes, to nonlinear field theory in theoretical physics, and to the theory of liquid crystals in materials science. During the past thirty years this subject has been developed extensively. The monograph is by no means intended to give a complete description of the theory of harmonic maps. For example, the book excludes a large part of the theory of harmonic maps from 2-dimensional domains, where the methods are quite different from those discussed here. The first chapter consists of introductory material. Several equivalent definitions of harmonic maps are described, and interesting examples are presented. Various important properties and formulas are derived. Among them are Bochner-type formula for the energy density and the second varia tional formula. This chapter serves not only as a basis for the later chapters, but also as a brief introduction to the theory. Chapter 2 is devoted to the conservation law of harmonic maps. Em phasis is placed on applications of conservation law to the mono tonicity formula and Liouville-type theorems."

This book gives an introductory exposition of the theory of hyperfunctions and regular singularities. This first English introduction to hyperfunctions brings readers to the forefront of research in the theory of harmonic analysis on symmetric spaces. A substantial bibliography is also included. This volume is based on a paper which was awarded the 1983 University of Copenhagen Gold Medal Prize.

Over the last decades, the study of nonself-adjoint or nonunitary operators has been mainly based on the method of characteristic functions and on methods of model construction or dilatation for corresponding operator classes. The characteristic function is a mathematical object (a matrix or an operator) associated with a class of nonself-adjoint (or nonunitary) operators that describes the spectral properties of the operators from this class. It may happen that characteristic functions are simpler than the corresponding operators; in this case one can significantly simplify the problem under investigation for these operators. For given characteristic function of an operator A, we construct, in explicit form, an operator that serves as a model A of the operator A in a certain linear space (to some extent this resembles the construction of diagonal and triangular matrices' unitary equivalent or similar, to certain matrix classes). The study of this model operator may give much information about the original operator (its spectrum, the completeness of the system of root subspaces, etc.). In this book, we consider various classes of linear (generally speaking, unbounded) operators, construct and study their characteristic functions and models. We also present a detailed study of contractiol)s and dissipative operators (in particular, from the viewpoint of their triangulation).

One service mathematics has rendered the 'Et moil " '1 .i favait su comment en revenir. je n'y scrais point all .. human race. It has put oommon sense back Jules Verne when: it belongs, on the topmost shelf next to the dusty canister labelled' discarded nonsense'. The series is divergent; therefore we may be EricT.Bell able to do something with it O. Heaviside Mathematics is a tool for thought A highly necessary tool in a world where both feedback and nonlineari ties abound. Similarly, all kinds of parts of mathematics serve as tools for other parts and for other sci ences. Applying a simple rewriting rule to the quote on the right above one finds such statements as: 'One ser vice topology has rendered mathematical physics .. .'; 'One service logic has rendered computer science .. .'; 'One service category theory has rendered mathematics .. .'. All arguably true. And all statements obtainable this way form part of the raison d'etre of this series."

On April 25-27, 1989, over a hundred mathematicians, including eleven from abroad, gathered at the University of Illinois Conference Center at Allerton Park for a major conference on analytic number theory. The occa sion marked the seventieth birthday and impending (official) retirement of Paul T. Bateman, a prominent number theorist and member of the mathe matics faculty at the University of Illinois for almost forty years. For fifteen of these years, he served as head of the mathematics department. The conference featured a total of fifty-four talks, including ten in vited lectures by H. Delange, P. Erdos, H. Iwaniec, M. Knopp, M. Mendes France, H. L. Montgomery, C. Pomerance, W. Schmidt, H. Stark, and R. C. Vaughan. This volume represents the contents of thirty of these talks as well as two further contributions. The papers span a wide range of topics in number theory, with a majority in analytic number theory."

This volume consists of a collection of articles for the proceedings of the 40th Taniguchi Symposium Analysis and Geometry in Several Complex Variables held in Katata, Japan, on June 23-28, 1997. Since the inhomogeneous Cauchy-Riemann equation was introduced in the study of Complex Analysis of Several Variables, there has been strong interaction between Complex Analysis and Real Analysis, in particular, the theory of Partial Differential Equations. Problems in Complex Anal ysis stimulate the development of the PDE theory which subsequently can be applied to Complex Analysis. This interaction involves Differen tial Geometry, for instance, via the CR structure modeled on the induced structure on the boundary of a complex manifold. Such structures are naturally related to the PDE theory. Differential Geometric formalisms are efficiently used in settling problems in Complex Analysis and the results enrich the theory of Differential Geometry. This volume focuses on the most recent developments in this inter action, including links with other fields such as Algebraic Geometry and Theoretical Physics. Written by participants in the Symposium, this vol ume treats various aspects of CR geometry and the Bergman kernel/ pro jection, together with other major subjects in modern Complex Analysis. We hope that this volume will serve as a resource for all who are interested in the new trends in this area. We would like to express our gratitude to the Taniguchi Foundation for generous financial support and hospitality. We would also like to thank Professor Kiyosi Ito who coordinated the organization of the symposium."

This book is the Proceedings of the Second ISAAC Congress. ISAAC is the acronym of the International Society for Analysis, its Applications and Computation. The president of ISAAC is Professor Robert P. Gilbert, the second named editor of this book, e-mail: [email protected]. The Congress is world-wide valued so highly that an application for a grant has been selected and this project has been executed with Grant No. 11-56 from *the Commemorative Association for the Japan World Exposition (1970). The finance of the publication of this book is exclusively the said Grant No. 11-56 from *. Thus, a pair of each one copy of two volumes of this book will be sent to all contributors, who registered at the Second ISAAC Congress in Fukuoka, free of charge by the Kluwer Academic Publishers. Analysis is understood here in the broad sense of the word, includ ing differential equations, integral equations, functional analysis, and function theory. It is the purpose of ISAAC to promote analysis, its applications, and its interaction with computation. With this objective, ISAAC organizes international Congresses for the presentation and dis cussion of research on analysis. ISAAC welcomes new members and those interested in joining ISAAC are encouraged to look at the web site http://www .math. udel.edu/ gilbert/isaac/index.html vi and http://www.math.fu-berlin.de/ rd/ ag/isaac/newton/index.html.

4. 1 Bergman-Toeplitz Operators Over Bounded Domains 242 4. 2 Hardy-Toeplitz Operators Over Strictly Domains Pseudoconvex 250 Groupoid C* -Algebras 4. 3 256 4. 4 Hardy-Toeplitz Operators Over Tubular Domains 267 4. 5 Bergman-Toeplitz Operators Over Tubular Domains 278 4. 6 Hardy-Toeplitz Operators Over Polycircular Domains 284 4. 7 Bergman-Toeplitz Operators Over Polycircular Domains 290 4. 8 Hopf C* -Algebras 299 4. 9 Actions and Coactions on C* -Algebras 310 4. 10 Hardy-Toeplitz Operators Over K-circular Domains 316 4. 11 Hardy-Toeplitz Operators Over Symmetric Domains 325 4. 12 Bergman-Toeplitz Operators Over Symmetric Domains 361 5. Index Theory for Multivariable Toeplitz Operators 5. 0 Introduction 371 5. 1 K-Theory for Topological Spaces 372 5. 2 Index Theory for Strictly Pseudoconvex Domains 384 5. 3 C*-Algebras K-Theory for 394 5. 4 Index Theory for Symmetric Domains 400 5. 5 Index Theory for Tubular Domains 432 5. 6 Index Theory for Polycircular Domains 455 References 462 Index of Symbols and Notations 471 In trod uction Toeplitz operators on the classical Hardy space (on the I-torus) and the closely related Wiener-Hopf operators (on the half-line) form a central part of operator theory, with many applications e. g. , to function theory on the unit disk and to the theory of integral equations.

With this second volume, we enter the intriguing world of complex analysis. From the first theorems on, the elegance and sweep of the results is evident. The starting point is the simple idea of extending a function initially given for real values of the argument to one that is defined when the argument is complex. From there, one proceeds to the main properties of holomorphic functions, whose proofs are generally short and quite illuminating: the Cauchy theorems, residues, analytic continuation, the argument principle.

With this background, the reader is ready to learn a wealth of additional material connecting the subject with other areas of mathematics: the Fourier transform treated by contour integration, the zeta function and the prime number theorem, and an introduction to elliptic functions culminating in their application to combinatorics and number theory.

Thoroughly developing a subject with many ramifications, while striking a careful balance between conceptual insights and the technical underpinnings of rigorous analysis, "Complex Analysis" will be welcomed by students of mathematics, physics, engineering and other sciences.

The Princeton Lectures in Analysis represents a sustained effort to introduce the core areas of mathematical analysis while also illustrating the organic unity between them. Numerous examples and applications throughout its four planned volumes, of which "Complex Analysis" is the second, highlight the far-reaching consequences of certain ideas in analysis to other fields of mathematics and a variety of sciences. Stein and Shakarchi move from an introduction addressing Fourier series and integrals to in-depth considerations of complex analysis; measure and integration theory, and Hilbert spaces; and, finally, further topics such as functional analysis, distributions and elements of probability theory.

The first contribution describes basic concepts, facts and problems of the modern theory of entire functions of several complex variables. The second contribution deals with analogies of basic Nevanlinna's theorems about the distribution of values in the multidimensional case and various applications. The third contribution is devoted to invariant metrics and volumes and their applications in problems of function theory of several variables. The fourth contribution touches upon various results concerning the rigidity of holomorphic mappings of complex spaces beginnning with classical Liouville's and Picard's theorems. Contribution five presents results concerning extension of holomorphic mappings to the boundaries of domains, and results about correspondence of boundaries and equivalence of domains with respect to biholomorphic mappings. Contribution six dwells on the problem of biholomorphic equivalence of manifolds in this differential geometric aspect. The last contribution reviews applications of multidimensional complex geometry in modern physical theories - supergravitation and supergauge fields. This volume will be useful to complex analysts and physicists. It is rounded off by an extensive bibliography.

Infinite dimensional holomorphy is the study of holomorphic or analytic func tions over complex topological vector spaces. The terms in this description are easily stated and explained and allow the subject to project itself ini tially, and innocently, as a compact theory with well defined boundaries. However, a comprehensive study would include delving into, and interacting with, not only the obvious topics of topology, several complex variables theory and functional analysis but also, differential geometry, Jordan algebras, Lie groups, operator theory, logic, differential equations and fixed point theory. This diversity leads to a dynamic synthesis of ideas and to an appreciation of a remarkable feature of mathematics - its unity. Unity requires synthesis while synthesis leads to unity. It is necessary to stand back every so often, to take an overall look at one's subject and ask "How has it developed over the last ten, twenty, fifty years? Where is it going? What am I doing?" I was asking these questions during the spring of 1993 as I prepared a short course to be given at Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro during the following July. The abundance of suit able material made the selection of topics difficult. For some time I hesitated between two very different aspects of infinite dimensional holomorphy, the geometric-algebraic theory associated with bounded symmetric domains and Jordan triple systems and the topological theory which forms the subject of the present book."

Let 8 be a Riemann surface of analytically finite type (9, n) with 29 - 2+n> O. Take two pointsP1, P2 E 8, and set 8 ,1>2= 8 \ {P1' P2}. Let PI Homeo+(8;P1,P2) be the group of all orientation preserving homeomor- phismsw: 8 -+ 8 fixingP1, P2 and isotopic to the identity on 8. Denote byHomeot(8;Pb P2) the set of all elements ofHomeo+(8;P1, P2) iso- topic to the identity on 8 ,P2' ThenHomeot(8;P1,P2) is a normal sub- pl group ofHomeo+(8;P1,P2). We setIsot(8;P1,P2) =Homeo+(8;P1,P2)/ Homeot(8;p1, P2). The purpose of this note is to announce a result on the Nielsen- Thurston-Bers type classification of an element [w] ofIsot+(8;P1,P2). We give a necessary and sufficient condition for thetypeto be hyperbolic. The condition is described in terms of properties of the pure braid [b ] w induced by [w]. Proofs will appear elsewhere. The problem considered in this note and the form ofthe solution are suggested by Kra's beautiful theorem in [6], where he treats self-maps of Riemann surfaces with one specified point. 2 TheclassificationduetoBers Let us recall the classification of elements of the mapping class group due to Bers (see Bers [1]). LetT(R) be the Teichmiiller space of a Riemann surfaceR, andMod(R) be the Teichmtiller modular group of R. Note that an orientation preserving homeomorphism w: R -+ R induces canonically an element (w) EMod(R). Denote by&.r(R)(*,.) the Teichmiiller distance onT(R). For an elementXEMod(R), we define a(x)= inf &.r(R)(r,x(r)).

This is a relatively fast paced graduate level introduction to complex algebraic geometry, from the basics to the frontier of the subject. It covers sheaf theory, cohomology, some Hodge theory, as well as some of the more algebraic aspects of algebraic geometry. The author frequently refers the reader if the treatment of a certain topic is readily available elsewhere but goes into considerable detail on topics for which his treatment puts a twist or a more transparent viewpoint. His cases of exploration and are chosen very carefully and deliberately. The textbook achieves its purpose of taking new students of complex algebraic geometry through this a deep yet broad introduction to a vast subject, eventually bringing them to the forefront of the topic via a non-intimidating style.

This book is first of all designed as a text for the course usually called "theory of functions of a real variable". This course is at present cus tomarily offered as a first or second year graduate course in United States universities, although there are signs that this sort of analysis will soon penetrate upper division undergraduate curricula. We have included every topic that we think essential for the training of analysts, and we have also gone down a number of interesting bypaths. We hope too that the book will be useful as a reference for mature mathematicians and other scientific workers. Hence we have presented very general and complete versions of a number of important theorems and constructions. Since these sophisticated versions may be difficult for the beginner, we have given elementary avatars of all important theorems, with appro priate suggestions for skipping. We have given complete definitions, ex planations, and proofs throughout, so that the book should be usable for individual study as well as for a course text. Prerequisites for reading the book are the following. The reader is assumed to know elementary analysis as the subject is set forth, for example, in TOM M. ApOSTOL'S Mathematical Analysis [Addison-Wesley Publ. Co., Reading, Mass., 1957], or WALTER RUDIN'S Principles of M athe nd matical Analysis [2 Ed., McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1964].

This volume is dedicated to the memory of Harry Ernest Rauch, who died suddenly on June 18, 1979. In organizing the volume we solicited: (i) articles summarizing Rauch's own work in differential geometry, complex analysis and theta functions (ii) articles which would give the reader an idea of the depth and breadth of Rauch's researches, interests, and influence, in the fields he investigated, and (iii) articles of high scientific quality which would be of general interest. In each of the areas to which Rauch made significant contribution - pinching theorems, teichmiiller theory, and theta functions as they apply to Riemann surfaces - there has been substantial progress. Our hope is that the volume conveys the originality of Rauch's own work, the continuing vitality of the fields he influenced, and the enduring respect for, and tribute to, him and his accom plishments in the mathematical community. Finally, it is a pleasure to thank the Department of Mathematics, of the Grad uate School of the City University of New York, for their logistical support, James Rauch who helped us with the biography, and Springer-Verlag for all their efforts in producing this volume. Isaac Chavel . Hershel M. Farkas Contents Harry Ernest Rauch - Biographical Sketch. . . . . . . . VII Bibliography of the Publications of H. E. Rauch. . . . . . X Ph.D. Theses Written under the Supervision of H. E. Rauch. XIII H. E. Rauch, Geometre Differentiel (by M. Berger) . . . . . . . ."

I - Entire functions of several complex variables constitute an important and original chapter in complex analysis. The study is often motivated by certain applications to specific problems in other areas of mathematics: partial differential equations via the Fourier-Laplace transformation and convolution operators, analytic number theory and problems of transcen dence, or approximation theory, just to name a few. What is important for these applications is to find solutions which satisfy certain growth conditions. The specific problem defines inherently a growth scale, and one seeks a solution of the problem which satisfies certain growth conditions on this scale, and sometimes solutions of minimal asymp totic growth or optimal solutions in some sense. For one complex variable the study of solutions with growth conditions forms the core of the classical theory of entire functions and, historically, the relationship between the number of zeros of an entire function f(z) of one complex variable and the growth of If I (or equivalently log If I) was the first example of a systematic study of growth conditions in a general setting. Problems with growth conditions on the solutions demand much more precise information than existence theorems. The correspondence between two scales of growth can be interpreted often as a correspondence between families of bounded sets in certain Frechet spaces. However, for applications it is of utmost importance to develop precise and explicit representations of the solutions."

The purpose of these lecture notes is to provide an introduction to the theory of complex Monge-Ampere operators (definition, regularity issues, geometric properties of solutions, approximation) on compact Kahler manifolds (with or without boundary).
These operators are of central use in several fundamental problems of complex differential geometry (Kahler-Einstein equation, uniqueness of constant scalar curvature metrics), complex analysis and dynamics. The topics covered include, the Dirichlet problem (after Bedford-Taylor), Monge-Ampere foliations and laminated currents, polynomial hulls and Perron envelopes with no analytic structure, a self-contained presentation of Krylov regularity results, a modernized proof of the Calabi-Yau theorem (after Yau and Kolodziej), an introduction to infinite dimensional riemannian geometry, geometric structures on spaces of Kahler metrics (after Mabuchi, Semmes and Donaldson), generalizations of the regularity theory of Caffarelli-Kohn-Nirenberg-Spruck (after Guan, Chen and Blocki) and Bergman approximation of geodesics (after Phong-Sturm and Berndtsson).

Each chapter can be read independently and is based on a series of lectures byR. Berman, Z. Blocki, S. Boucksom, F. Delarue, R. Dujardin, B. Kolev and A. Zeriahi, delivered to non-experts. The book is thus addressed to any mathematician with some interest in one of the following fields, complex differential geometry, complex analysis, complex dynamics, fully non-linear PDE's and stochastic analysis."

The theory of complex analytic sets is part of the modern geometrical theory of functions of several complex variables. A wide circle of problems in multidimensional complex analysis, related to holomorphic functions and maps, can be reformulated in terms of analytic sets. In these reformulations additional phenomena may emerge, while for the proofs new methods are necessary. (As an example we can mention the boundary properties of conformal maps of domains in the plane, which may be studied by means of the boundary properties of the graphs of such maps.) The theory of complex analytic sets is a relatively young branch of complex analysis. Basically, it was developed to fulfill the need of the theory of functions of several complex variables, but for a long time its development was, so to speak, within the framework of algebraic geometry - by analogy with algebraic sets. And although at present the basic methods of the theory of analytic sets are related with analysis and geometry, the foundations of the theory are expounded in the purely algebraic language of ideals in commutative algebras. In the present book I have tried to eliminate this noncorrespondence and to give a geometric exposition of the foundations of the theory of complex analytic sets, using only classical complex analysis and a minimum of algebra (well-known properties of polynomials of one variable). Moreover, it must of course be taken into consideration that algebraic geometry is one of the most important domains of application of the theory of analytic sets, and hence a lot of attention is given in the present book to algebraic sets.

Bringing together two fundamental texts from Frederic Pham's research on singular integrals, the first part of this book focuses on topological and geometrical aspects while the second explains the analytic approach. Using notions developed by J. Leray in the calculus of residues in several variables and R. Thom's isotopy theorems, Frederic Pham's foundational study of the singularities of integrals lies at the interface between analysis and algebraic geometry, culminating in the Picard-Lefschetz formulae. These mathematical structures, enriched by the work of Nilsson, are then approached using methods from the theory of differential equations and generalized from the point of view of hyperfunction theory and microlocal analysis.

Providing a 'must-have' introduction to the singularities of integrals, a number of supplementary references also offer a convenient guide to the subjects covered.

This book will appeal to both mathematicians and physicists with an interest in the area of singularities of integrals.

Frederic Pham, now retired, was Professor at the University of Nice. He has published several educational and research texts. His recent work concerns semi-classical analysis and resurgent functions."

This volume offers a well-structured overview of existent computational approaches to Riemann surfaces and those currently in development. The authors of the contributions represent the groups providing publically available numerical codes in this field. Thus this volume illustrates which software tools are available and how they can be used in practice. In addition examples for solutions to partial differential equations and in surface theory are presented. The intended audience of this book is twofold. It can be used as a textbook for a graduate course in numerics of Riemann surfaces, in which case the standard undergraduate background, i.e., calculus and linear algebra, is required. In particular, no knowledge of the theory of Riemann surfaces is expected; the necessary background in this theory is contained in the Introduction chapter. At the same time, this book is also intended for specialists in geometry and mathematical physics applying the theory of Riemann surfaces in their research. It is the first book on numerics of Riemann surfaces that reflects the progress made in this field during the last decade, and it contains original results. There are a growing number of applications that involve the evaluation of concrete characteristics of models analytically described in terms of Riemann surfaces. Many problem settings and computations in this volume are motivated by such concrete applications in geometry and mathematical physics.

This volume of the EMS contains four survey articles on analytic spaces. They are excellent introductions to each respective area. Starting from basic principles in several complex variables each article stretches out to current trends in research. Graduate students and researchers will find a useful addition in the extensive bibliography at the end of each article.

Generalising classical concepts of probability theory, the investigation of operator (semi)-stable laws as possible limit distributions of operator-normalized sums of i.i.d. random variable on finite-dimensional vector space started in 1969. Currently, this theory is still in progress and promises interesting applications. Parallel to this, similar stability concepts for probabilities on groups were developed during recent decades. It turns out that the existence of suitable limit distributions has a strong impact on the structure of both the normalizing automorphisms and the underlying group. Indeed, investigations in limit laws led to contractable groups and - at least within the class of connected groups - to homogeneous groups, in particular to groups that are topologically isomorphic to a vector space. Moreover, it has been shown that (semi)-stable measures on groups have a vector space counterpart and vice versa. The purpose of this book is to describe the structure of limit laws and the limit behaviour of normalized i.i.d. random variables on groups and on finite-dimensional vector spaces from a common point of view. This will also shed a new light on the classical situation. Chapter 1 provides an introduction to stability problems on vector spaces. Chapter II is concerned with parallel investigations for homogeneous groups and in Chapter III the situation beyond homogeneous Lie groups is treated. Throughout, emphasis is laid on the description of features common to the group- and vector space situation. Chapter I can be understood by graduate students with some background knowledge in infinite divisibility. Readers of Chapters II and III are assumed to be familiar with basic techniques from probability theory on locally compact groups.