Epistemology

English

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἐπιστήμη (epistēmē, “science, knowledge”), from ἐπίσταμαι (epístamai, “to know”), and -λογία (-logía, “study” or “logic of”), from λόγος (lógos, “speech, language”).

The term was introduced into English by James Frederick Ferrier (1808–1864).

Transliteration Pronunciation

• Katakana: エピステモロジー
• Hangul: 에피스테몰로지
• Anglo-Saxon runic transliteration: ᛖᛈᛁᛋᛏᛖᛗᚩᛚᚩᚷᛁ

Noun

epistemology (countable and uncountable, plural epistemologies)

1. The branch of philosophy concerned with the study of knowledge and the theory of knowledge, including questions such as what knowledge is, how knowledge is acquired, what people know, how people know what they know, and how knowledge may be justified as true.

   Synonyms: epistemics, kenlore, metaknowledge

2. A particular instance, version, school, or theory of knowledge.