The term is derived from the
Ancient Greek words
gnosis ("knowledge", γνῶσις) and
logos ("word" or "discourse", λόγος). Linguistically, one might compare it to
epistemology, which is derived from the Greek words
episteme ("certain knowledge") and
logos. The term "gnosiology" is not well known today, although found in Baldwin's (1906)
Dictionary of Psychology and Philosophy. The
Encyclopædia Britannica (1911) remarks that "The term Gnosiology has not, however, come into general use." The term "gnosiology" (
Modern Greek: γνωσιολογία) is used more commonly in
Modern Greek than in English. As a
philosophical concept, gnosiology broadly means the theory of knowledge, which in ancient Greek philosophy was perceived as a combination of
sensory perception and
intellect and then made into memory (called the
mnemonic system). When considered in the context of
science, gnosiology takes on a different meaning: the study of knowledge, its origin, processes, and validity. Gnosiology being the study of types of knowledge i.e. memory (abstract knowledge derived from experimentation being "
episteme" or teachable knowledge), experience
induction (or
empiricism),
deduction (or
rationalism), scientific
abductive reasoning,
contemplation (
theoria),
metaphysical and instinctual or
intuitive knowledge. Gnosiology is focused on the study of the
noesis and
noetic components of human
ontology. Within gnosiology, gnosis is derived by
noesis. Noesis refers to the experiences or activities of the nous. This makes the study and origin of gnosis and gnosiology the study of the intuitive and or instinctual. ==Philosophy and Western esotericism==