empíria

Empíria, in philosophy, refers to the view that knowledge primarily arises from sensory experience. It holds that observations, experiments, and evidence obtained through the senses are the main sources of justified belief, in contrast to rationalist accounts that emphasize reason or innate ideas. The term comes from Greek empeiria, via Latin empiria, and in many Romance languages the related words are empiría or empirismo.

Core claims of empiricism include the dependence of knowledge on empirical data, the role of induction in forming generalizations from observed cases, and the emphasis on testable, repeatable evidence. Empiricists typically stress that ideas and beliefs should be grounded in experience, and they often view science as a process of building reliable knowledge through observation and experiment.

Historical development: Early roots can be traced to ancient Greece, with Aristotle stressing observation as a basis for knowledge. In the modern era, Francis Bacon championed an inductive, evidence-driven method. The 17th and 18th centuries produced prominent British empiricists—John Locke, George Berkeley, and David Hume—who argued that all ideas originate in experience and that our beliefs should be constrained by what runs counter to or is supported by evidence. Immanuel Kant later challenged pure empiricism by arguing that the mind supplies a priori forms that condition experience, prompting debates about the limits of empirical knowledge.

Impact and critique: Empiricism underpins the scientific method, prioritizing observation, measurement, and reproducibility. Critics note its difficulties with a priori knowledge, mathematics, logic, and theoretical entities that cannot be directly observed. Many philosophical traditions today blend empirical methods with rational, theoretical, or conceptual analyses, reflecting a nuanced view of how we obtain and justify knowledge.