cosmogonist

A cosmogonist is a person who studies cosmogony or writes accounts of the origin of the universe. The term comes from Greek kosmos, meaning “world” or “universe,” and gonē, meaning “origin” or “birth.” In modern usage, cosmogonists may be historians of myth, philosophers, or scientists who engage with questions about how the cosmos began, as well as authors who craft cosmogonies for fictional worlds.

Cosmogony is the set of theories or myths that describe the creation of the universe. In ancient civilizations, cosmogonists produced creation myths that explain the emergence of order from chaos or from divine acts. Classical examples include Hesiod’s Theogony in ancient Greece, and various mythic traditions across Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, and the Americas. In scientific contexts, origin stories are treated as part of cosmology and physical cosmology, with explanations based on empirical evidence such as the Big Bang; professional scientists typically refer to cosmology rather than cosmogony, though historical discussions often use cosmogony to describe the early attempts to explain origins.

In modern usage, the label cosmogonist may describe a writer or artist who constructs a cosmogony for a fictional universe, or a scholar who surveys, analyzes, or compares mythic and philosophical creation accounts. The term can also appear in religious discourse to describe proponents of a particular creation narrative. Overall, cosmogony contrasts with cosmology, the scientific study of the universe’s structure, history, and laws, while cosmogony concentrates on the origin and initial development of the cosmos, whether in myth, philosophy, or speculative science.