It's difficult to pinpoint one single person who "discovered" the rotation of the Earth. The idea evolved over centuries through the contributions of many people.

Here's a breakdown of key figures and their contributions:

* Ancient Greeks: Philosophers like Pythagoras (6th century BC) and Aristarchus of Samos (3rd century BC) proposed that the Earth rotated on its axis. However, their ideas were not widely accepted at the time.

* Nicolaus Copernicus (1543): He revived the heliocentric model, proposing that the Earth revolves around the Sun. While this primarily dealt with the Earth's revolution, it also indirectly supported the idea of Earth's rotation.

* Galileo Galilei (early 17th century): Galileo's observations with the telescope provided evidence for the phases of Venus, which supported the heliocentric model and further strengthened the idea of Earth's rotation.

* Léon Foucault (1851): His famous Foucault's pendulum experiment provided the first direct, visible proof of Earth's rotation.

Therefore, it's more accurate to say that the understanding of Earth's rotation was a gradual process involving numerous scientific minds across different eras.