The first scientist to describe the cell was Robert Hooke. In 1665, he observed cork cells using a microscope and described them as "a great many little Boxes, or Cells." This was the first time cells had been observed and named. While other scientists, such as Anton van Leeuwenhoek and Matthias Schleiden, also made significant contributions to our understanding of cells, Robert Hooke is credited with being the first to use the term "cell" and to recognize that cells were the basic unit of life.