The origin of philosophy it dates back to the 6th century BC, in Ancient Greece. Etymologically the word philosophy comes from the Greek roots philo Y sophia, which mean love and wisdom respectively.
Its literal translation is love of wisdom, but in its broadest concept, philosophy is dedicated to the study of both the most basic and the deepest questions of human existence..
The first thinker to call himself philosopher was Pythagoras, although he was certainly not the first to try to find answers to the great mysteries of being.
Before the advent of philosophy, both natural and human events found mythological explanations. Until the 6th century, mythology was rooted in the customs and traditions of ancient peoples.
The mythological stories served to give an explanation of the passage of time, natural phenomena, the origin of humanity, the mysteries of life and death, among others. They were also a way of preserving historical events.
The transition from myth to logos did not happen spontaneously or immediately. The first philosophers modified and expanded the form of many of the mythological assumptions regarding the origin of the cosmos, the human being and his role in the great cosmological scheme.
The Greek word logos means order, word and reason. Used to indicate a rational, non-mythological explanation.
Heraclitus was the first philosopher to use the term to refer to the principle of the cosmos that organizes and orders the world. This principle had the power to regulate the birth and decline of things in the world..
Later, the Stoics developed this notion, conceiving it as the principle that gave life and order to all beings in the universe..
The Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus is considered the first philosopher and father of Western philosophy. He was born in Miletus in the Asian region, approximately between 620-625 BC. This philosopher made great contributions not only to the development of philosophy but also of science.
By leaving mythology aside in the explanation of natural phenomena or existence, he inaugurated a new tradition that revolutionized the way of conceiving the world. Also, he collaborated with the development of the scientific method by posing hypotheses.
This first natural philosopher proposed answers to a series of questions about the planet Earth such as what was its shape and size, how was it sustained, what was the cause of earthquakes and others.
He also speculated on the sun and the moon. These proposals were the genesis of scientific conjectures about natural phenomena.
Its great merit is that its theories and arguments could be refuted. His explanations of natural phenomena were materialistic and not mythological or theological. Furthermore, their hypotheses were rational and scientific.
The pre-Socratics were philosophers who preceded the thought of Socrates. These focused on speculating about the material principle of nature.
Thus, following the tradition started by Thales of Miletus, they used reason to give explanations about the cosmos and how it works..
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