Letologia

Letologia is a hypothetical interdisciplinary discipline that studies the concept and uses of "let" across language, law, and social practice. Proponents describe it as examining how the word let operates semantically and pragmatically (as in "let him go"), how the performative power of permission shapes behavior, and how the verb's different senses—permit, lease, refrain—interact with governance, contract design, and ethical norms.

It concerns linguistics (semantics and pragmatics of "let"), jurisprudence (permission vs. prohibition, tenancies and leases), philosophy of action (agency and permission), and information technology (permission systems, access control).

Although traces appear in late-20th-century philosophical discussions of permission, Letologia has no stable institutional presence. Some scholars in linguistics and legal theory have used the term informally to signal cross-domain analyses, but there is no standardized curriculum or society.

Research methods include corpus linguistics, legal comparative studies, thought experiments, and interdisciplinary case studies. It emphasizes how "let" carries normative weight and how contexts modify its force.

Critics argue that the term is too broad and overlaps with established disciplines such as linguistics, semiotics, and law. Supporters see Letologia as a framework to integrate insights about permission, release, and conveyance across domains.

See also: linguistics, philosophy of language, law, semiotics, contract law.