Kuantor

Kuantor is the term used in some languages, including Indonesian, to refer to the logical device known in English as a quantifier. A kuantor indicates the extent to which a predicate applies to elements of a given domain, thereby expressing quantity or scope.

The two standard kuantor are universal and existential. The universal kuantor, commonly written as ∀ and read as “for all,” indicates that a predicate holds for every element in the domain (for all x, P(x)). The existential kuantor, written as ∃ and read as “there exists,” asserts that there is at least one element for which the predicate holds (there exists an x, P(x)). In addition to these, generalized or complex kuantor express other quantities, such as “most,” “few,” “no,” or numerical counts like “two of the books.”

In formal semantics, a kuantor binds a variable within a logical formula, and its scope can interact with other quantifiers and with negation, producing different readings (for example, the order of ∀ and ∃ can matter). In natural language, quantifier phrases such as every, some, no, and many are analyzed as kuantor expressions that determine the truth conditions of sentences.

Generalized quantifiers extend beyond mere true/false under a single domain element, encompassing expressions that specify proportions, multiples, or counts (e.g., “most students,” “three of the books”). Across linguistics and logic, kuantor theory helps explain how quantity interacts with predicate structure, inference, and language interpretation.

Historically, quantification emerged with the development of predicate calculus in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Frege introduced the ideas of variables and predicates, while later logicians like Peano, Hilbert, and Russell standardized the universal and existential quantifiers and their notation.