Epistemology
WordNet

noun


(1)   The philosophical theory of knowledge
WiktionaryText

Etymology


From < + from . The term was introduced into English by the Scottish philosopher James Frederick Ferrier (1808-1864).

Noun



  1. The branch of philosophy dealing with the study of knowledge; theory of knowledge, asking such questions as "What is knowledge?", "How is knowledge acquired?", "What do people know?", "How do we know what we know?".
    Some thinkers take the view that, beginning with the work of Descartes, epistemology began to replace metaphysics as the most important area of philosophy.
  2. A particular theory of knowledge.
    In his epistemology, Plato maintains that our knowledge of universal concepts is a kind of recollection.

Related terms

  • epistemic
  • epistemological
  • epistemological turn
  • epistemologist
 
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