Autology

/ɔːˈtɒlədʒi/ noun

Definition

The study or science of self-referential systems or something describing itself, often used in philosophy and logic to discuss how systems relate to themselves.

Etymology

From Greek 'auto-' (self) + '-logia' (study of, discourse). This philosophical term emerged in the 20th century to address problems in logic where systems reference themselves.

Kelly Says

Autology gets weird fast—imagine trying to define the word 'definition' using only definitions, or writing instructions for how to read instructions; that recursive headache is exactly what autology studies.

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