Sortumists

Sortumists are a loosely organized movement of thinkers and practitioners who advocate systematic ordering of knowledge and social life through explicit taxonomies and decision rules. The movement emerged online in the early 2010s, in response to information overload and decision fatigue. Adherents seek to create clear categories, define boundaries, and minimize ambiguity in communication, policy, and design, aiming for more efficient reasoning and reproducible results.

Core beliefs center on the primacy of structure for understanding. Sorting and classification are seen as foundational cognitive tools that reduce uncertainty and improve transfer of knowledge. Sortumists typically advocate explicit criteria for category definitions, modular taxonomies, and transparent decision rules that can be tested and refined. They emphasize argue that boundaries should be revisitable and that ambiguity is a managed variable rather than an absence of information.

Practices include collaborative taxonomy projects, periodic sorting challenges, and the publication of guidelines such as The Sorting Manual and Principles of Boundary Definition. Communities form around regional study groups, online forums, and data-ethics collectives. They also host conferences known as Sortum Convergences, where participants present classifications, critique frameworks, and discuss applications in information architecture, knowledge management, and user experience.

Organization and influence are decentralized; there is no central authority. Instead, federated clusters contribute to shared repositories of taxonomies and sorting rules. The movement has influenced information architecture, library science, and data-driven decision processes, particularly where clarity and consistency are valued. Critics argue that over-emphasis on rigid structures can suppress nuance and context, leading to rigidity and dogmatism. Proponents counter that disciplined sorting can improve communication and reduce errors when applied with reflexive awareness of context.