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The Lebesgue and Riemann Integrals Compared
1 · Prerequisites
- Areas of Elementary Plane Figures
- Binary Operations, Monoids, Groups and Subgroups
- Bounded Variation and the Riemann–Stieltjes Integral
- Compactness
- Compactness in Metric Spaces
- Completeness, Completion, and Uniform Continuity
- Construction of the Natural Numbers
- Construction of the Real Numbers via Cauchy Sequences
- Construction of the Real Numbers via Dedekind Cuts
- Continuity, IVT, EVT, and Uniform Continuity
- Cosets, Index and Lagrange's Theorem
- Countability and Uncountability
- Divisibility, Euclidean Domains, Principal Ideal Domains and Unique Factorisation
- Filters and Ultrafilters
- Finite Counting, Factorials and Binomial Coefficients
- Foundations of the Real Numbers for Analysis
- Ideals, Quotient Rings and the Isomorphism Theorems for Rings
- Improper Integrals
- Lebesgue Measure on Euclidean Space
- Lebesgue-Stieltjes Measures and Distribution Functions
- Limits of Real Functions
- limsup, liminf, and Subsequential Limits
- Linear Independence, Bases and Dimension
- Linear Transformations, Rank-Nullity and Quotient Spaces
- Measurable Functions and Simple Approximation
- Measures and Their Basic Properties
- Metric Spaces
- Monotone Functions, Discontinuities, and Continuity Sets
- Monotone Sequences, Bolzano-Weierstrass, and Cauchy Completeness
- Normal Subgroups and Quotient Groups
- Order, Zorn's Lemma, and the Axiom of Choice
- Outer Measure and the Caratheodory Extension Theorem
- Polynomial Rings, the Division Algorithm and Roots
- Properties of the Integral and the Working FTC
- Relations, Functions, and Quotients
- Rings, Subrings, Integral Domains and Fields
- Rⁿ as a Normed Space; Vector-Valued Functions
- Roots, Rational Powers, and Classical Inequalities
- Sequences and Limits
- Series: Convergence and the Nonnegative Tests
- Sigma Algebras and Borel Sets
- Simple Field Extensions and the Construction of the Complex Numbers
- Subspaces, Products, and Quotients
- Suprema and Infima
- The Lebesgue Integral and the Convergence Theorems
- The Riemann Integral in Rᵐ and Jordan Content
- The Riemann Integral: Definition and Integrability
- The Topology of Euclidean Space
- The ZFC Axioms and the Basic Set Constructions
- Topological Spaces and Continuity
- Topology of ℝ
- Vector Spaces, Linear Subspaces, Span and Direct Sums
2 · Summary
This page is the seam between the elementary Riemann theory and the Lebesgue integral. The main comparison theorem is proved by Darboux envelopes rather than by quoting the already-published null-discontinuity criterion A bounded function on a closed bounded interval, or on a closed nondegenerate rectangle, is Riemann integrable exactly when its discontinuity set has Lebesgue measure zero: the point of the route here is to make the completeness of Lebesgue measure visible.
The page also records the comparison corollaries that belong exactly at that seam. Arzela's bounded convergence theorem becomes a short consequence of Lebesgue bounded convergence, nonnegative improper half-line integrals pass to Lebesgue integrals by monotone convergence, and the continuous Riemann-Stieltjes integral is identified with integration against the corresponding Lebesgue-Stieltjes measure. The published Jordan-content and Lebesgue-criterion agreement theorems remain earlier inputs and are cited in summary rather than duplicated here.
3 · Logical flowchart
4 · Definitions, theorems and proofs
A bounded Riemann integrable function admits Borel Darboux envelopes with the same Lebesgue integral
Statement
Assume the Axiom of Countable Choice. Let , let be bounded and Riemann integrable, and write for its Riemann integral. Then there exist bounded Borel functions such that
In particular,
Facts & Assumptions
Given: The Axiom of Countable Choice, reals , a bounded Riemann integrable function with Riemann integral , and a real with for every .
Riemann's criterion says that for every real there is a partition of with . (Riemann's criterion: a bounded on is Darboux integrable if and only if for every real there is a partition with )
The Borel sigma-algebra of a subspace is the trace of the ambient Borel sigma-algebra. (The Borel sigma-algebra of a subspace is the trace of the ambient Borel sigma-algebra)
Pointwise infima of measurable functions are measurable, and the pointwise limit of an increasing sequence of measurable functions is measurable. (Closure properties of measurable functions used by the integral)
The nonnegative integral is monotone. (Monotonicity and nonnegative homogeneity of the nonnegative integral)
The nonnegative integral agrees with the simple integral on nonnegative simple functions, and the simple integral of is . (The nonnegative integral agrees with the simple integral on simple functions, The integral of a nonnegative simple function)
Monotone convergence holds for nonnegative measurable functions. (Monotone convergence for the integral)
Every interval of with any endpoint convention is Lebesgue measurable with its usual length. (A box in with parameters is Lebesgue measurable of measure , whichever of its faces are included)
A measurable real function is integrable exactly when the integral of its absolute value is finite, and the Lebesgue integral is linear on . (Integrable real and complex functions, and their integrals, The Lebesgue integral is linear on )
For every real there is a natural number with . (For every in a complete ordered field there is a natural with )
A bounded function is Riemann integrable with value exactly when it is Darboux integrable with the same value, and then every lower Darboux sum is at most and every upper Darboux sum is at least . (The Darboux and Riemann definitions agree: a bounded on is Darboux integrable with integral if and only if for every real there is a real such that for every tagged partition of mesh below , If on then for every partition ; in particular every constant function is integrable, with )
Proof
By [L1], choose recursively a refining sequence of partitions of such that for every : choose for , and once is chosen, let satisfy and put ; then [L2] preserves the inequality under refinement. For each , write and let and be the infimum and supremum of on . Define Each partition piece is a Borel subset of by [L3], so and are bounded Borel functions on . Also pointwise, while [L11] gives
Put and . Since , the last clause of [L4] makes Borel measurable; since are measurable, the infimum clause of [L4] makes Borel measurable. Step 1.1 gives . Now is a nonnegative simple function, so [L6] and [L8] give Because , [L7] yields the limit being the squeeze from step 1.1. Since , the constant function is integrable by [L6] and [L8], so step 1.1 and [L5], [L9] show that and
For each the function is nonnegative simple, and step 1.1 with [L6] and [L8] gives Because and , one has for every . So [L5] yields If that integral were positive, [L10] would give with , contradicting the displayed inequality. Therefore The same bound shows .
Since and both summands are integrable, [L9] and step 3.1 give Together with steps 2.1 and 3.1, this proves the existence of bounded Borel envelopes with the same Lebesgue integral .
A bounded Riemann integrable function on a closed bounded interval is Lebesgue measurable and has the same integral
Statement
Assume the Axiom of Countable Choice. Let and let be bounded and Riemann integrable. Then is Lebesgue measurable on and is integrable there, and its Lebesgue integral equals its Riemann integral:
This is the point at which the completeness of Lebesgue measure is used essentially: the proof obtains a Borel function equal to almost everywhere, and measurability of itself is then a completeness statement.
Facts & Assumptions
Given: The Axiom of Countable Choice, reals , a bounded Riemann integrable function , its Riemann integral , and a real with on .
The envelope lemma produces bounded Borel functions with and (A bounded Riemann integrable function admits Borel Darboux envelopes with the same Lebesgue integral)
A nonnegative measurable function has integral exactly when it vanishes almost everywhere. (A nonnegative measurable function has integral exactly when it vanishes almost everywhere)
On a complete measure space, a function equal almost everywhere to a measurable function is measurable. (On a complete measure space, equality almost everywhere preserves measurability)
Lebesgue measure on is complete. (Assuming countable choice, is a sigma-algebra containing every elementary set and is a complete measure extending elementary volume)
Two integrable functions that agree almost everywhere have the same integral over every measurable set. (Two integrable functions are equal almost everywhere exactly when all of their indefinite integrals agree)
If a real measurable function is bounded in absolute value by a nonnegative integrable function, then its absolute value has finite integral; a measurable real function is integrable exactly when the integral of its absolute value is finite. (Closure properties of measurable functions used by the integral, Monotonicity and nonnegative homogeneity of the nonnegative integral, The nonnegative integral agrees with the simple integral on simple functions, The integral of a nonnegative simple function, Integrable real and complex functions, and their integrals)
The interval is Lebesgue measurable with measure . (A box in with parameters is Lebesgue measurable of measure , whichever of its faces are included)
Proof
By [L1], choose bounded Borel functions on with [L1, L2] and both integrals equal to . Then and So [L2] gives almost everywhere. Since , the same null set yields almost everywhere.
By [L4], the measure space is [step 1.1, L3, L4] complete. The function is measurable because it is Borel, so [L3] applied to step 1.1 shows that is Lebesgue measurable.
The constant function is a nonnegative simple measurable [step 2.1, L1, L6, L7] function, and [L6] together with [L7] gives Since step 2.1 makes measurable and , [L6] yields Hence is Lebesgue integrable on . The same estimate applies to , because [L1] gives .
Steps 1.1 and 3.1 show that and are integrable and agree [step 1.1, step 3.1, L1, L5] almost everywhere. Taking the measurable set in [L5] gives By [L1], the right-hand side is . So the Lebesgue and Riemann integrals of agree. ∎
A Riemann integrable function on a closed bounded interval is almost everywhere equal to a Borel function
Statement
Assume the Axiom of Countable Choice. Let and let be Riemann integrable. Then there is a Borel function such that almost everywhere on .
Facts & Assumptions
Given: The Axiom of Countable Choice, reals , and a Riemann integrable function .
The envelope lemma gives bounded Borel functions with and (A bounded Riemann integrable function admits Borel Darboux envelopes with the same Lebesgue integral)
A nonnegative measurable function has integral exactly when it vanishes almost everywhere. (A nonnegative measurable function has integral exactly when it vanishes almost everywhere)
Proof
By [L1], choose bounded Borel functions with [L1, L2] and Since , [L2] gives almost everywhere on .
On the same full-measure set one has [step 1.1, L1] , so almost everywhere. Taking proves the claim, and is Borel by step 1.1. ∎
Arzela's bounded convergence theorem for Riemann integrals
Statement
Assume the Axiom of Countable Choice. Let , let be Riemann integrable for every , and let be Riemann integrable. Suppose that for every and that there is a real with for all and all . Then
Facts & Assumptions
Given: The Axiom of Countable Choice, reals , Riemann integrable functions with for every , and a real with for all and .
A bounded Riemann integrable function on is Lebesgue measurable, Lebesgue integrable, and has the same Lebesgue and Riemann integrals. (A bounded Riemann integrable function on a closed bounded interval is Lebesgue measurable and has the same integral)
On a finite measure space, almost-everywhere pointwise convergence of a uniformly bounded measurable sequence implies convergence of the integrals. (Bounded convergence on a finite measure space)
The interval has finite Lebesgue measure . (A box in with parameters is Lebesgue measurable of measure , whichever of its faces are included)
Proof
By [L1], each and is Lebesgue measurable and integrable on , and Also [L3] makes a finite measure space.
The convergence hypothesis is pointwise, hence almost everywhere, and the uniform bound holds everywhere. So [L2] applies on and gives Translating the two sides with step 1.1 yields the stated convergence of the Riemann integrals.
A nonnegative improper Riemann integral on a half-line agrees with the Lebesgue integral
Statement
Assume the Axiom of Countable Choice. Let and let be Riemann integrable on every compact interval with . If the improper Riemann integral converges in the sense of Improper integrals over unbounded intervals, then is Lebesgue integrable on and
Facts & Assumptions
Given: The Axiom of Countable Choice, a real , a nonnegative function that is Riemann integrable on every with , and a finite improper Riemann integral .
On every compact interval, a bounded Riemann integrable function is Lebesgue integrable there with the same value. (A bounded Riemann integrable function on a closed bounded interval is Lebesgue measurable and has the same integral)
Monotone convergence holds for nonnegative measurable functions. (Monotone convergence for the integral)
The improper integral over is the limit of the truncated Riemann integrals as the right endpoint tends to . (Improper integrals over unbounded intervals)
Proof
For each natural number , define Then and for every . By [L1] applied on ,
Since , [L2] gives Because , [L3] identifies the last limit with the given improper integral . Hence and in particular the Lebesgue integral is finite, so is integrable on the half-line.
For a continuous integrand, the Riemann-Stieltjes and Lebesgue-Stieltjes integrals agree
Statement
Assume the Axiom of Countable Choice. Let , let be continuous, let be nondecreasing and right-continuous, and let be the Lebesgue-Stieltjes measure attached to . Then is -integrable on and
Facts & Assumptions
Given: The Axiom of Countable Choice, reals , a continuous function , a nondecreasing right-continuous function , its Lebesgue-Stieltjes measure , the Riemann-Stieltjes integral , and a real with on .
A continuous integrand is Riemann-Stieltjes integrable against every bounded-variation integrator; since a nondecreasing function has bounded variation, exists. (A continuous integrand is Riemann–Stieltjes integrable against every bounded-variation integrator)
For a nondecreasing integrator, Riemann-Stieltjes integrability is equivalent to the Darboux criterion; because is continuous, for every there is a partition with . (Darboux criterion for Riemann–Stieltjes integrability with a nondecreasing integrator)
The nonnegative integral agrees with the simple integral on simple functions, and the simple integral of is . (The nonnegative integral agrees with the simple integral on simple functions, The integral of a nonnegative simple function)
Continuous functions on are Borel measurable. (Continuous functions on Euclidean spaces are Borel measurable)
A measurable real function is integrable exactly when the integral of its absolute value is finite, and the Lebesgue integral is linear on . (Integrable real and complex functions, and their integrals, The Lebesgue integral is linear on )
The nonnegative integral is monotone. (Monotonicity and nonnegative homogeneity of the nonnegative integral)
Riemann-Stieltjes sums are and means that every tagged partition of sufficiently small mesh has sum within any prescribed of . (Riemann–Stieltjes sums, upper and lower sums, and the Riemann–Stieltjes integral)
The Riemann-Stieltjes integral is linear in the integrand. (Linearity and interval additivity of the Riemann–Stieltjes integral)
Proof
Extend to a continuous function by setting for , for , and for . Then [L5] makes Borel measurable. Put This is a nonnegative measurable function. Since , [L3], [L4], [L6], and [L7] show that is -integrable. Let By [L1], the integral exists. The constant integrand has the same Riemann-Stieltjes sum for every tagged partition, so [L8] gives Therefore [L9] yields
Let . By [L2], choose a partition with . By [L8], choose such that every tagged partition of mesh below has Riemann-Stieltjes sum for within of . Let be a refinement of with mesh below . For each put and define nonnegative simple functions on by Then . Because each refined infimum is at least the corresponding coarse infimum and each refined supremum is at most the corresponding coarse supremum, the Stieltjes lower sum increases and the upper sum decreases under this refinement, so Also [L3] and [L4] give
Fix any tagging of . Then and because on every subinterval, Hence both and lie in an interval of length , so
Because , [L8] gives Combining this with step 2.1, Since was arbitrary,
Step 1.1 gives , and both summands are integrable by step 1.1. Therefore [L3] and [L6] yield This is exactly so the two integrals agree.
5 · Examples, counterexamples and false statements
None yet.
Sources
- Richard F. Bass, Real Analysis for Graduate Students, Version 5.0, Section 9.1 and Exercise 9.6
- Richard L. Wheeden and Antoni Zygmund, Measure and Integral: An Introduction to Real Analysis, Section 5
- Richard F. Bass, Real Analysis for Graduate Students, Version 5.0, Theorem 9.1
- Richard L. Wheeden and Antoni Zygmund, Measure and Integral: An Introduction to Real Analysis, Theorem (5.52)
- Richard F. Bass, Real Analysis for Graduate Students, Version 5.0, Section 9.1
- Richard L. Wheeden and Antoni Zygmund, Measure and Integral: An Introduction to Real Analysis, Corollary (10.32)
- Richard F. Bass, Real Analysis for Graduate Students, Version 5.0, Exercise 9.4
- Richard L. Wheeden and Antoni Zygmund, Measure and Integral: An Introduction to Real Analysis, Theorem (5.53)
- Richard L. Wheeden and Antoni Zygmund, Measure and Integral: An Introduction to Real Analysis, Theorem (11.11)