methodos

Methodos is a term of Greek origin meaning method, plan, or systematic procedure. In classical Greek, it denoted a disciplined way of proceeding in inquiry, demonstration, or craft. The word is the ancestor of the English word method and of methodology, via Latin methodus and Greek methodos.

Historically, methodos appears in philosophical and scientific contexts as a reference to the organized approach to knowledge. In Aristotle's writings and in later Hellenistic works, it referred to the method by which knowledge is pursued, demonstrated, or taught, including the arrangement of arguments, observations, and inferences. In rhetoric, it could denote a plan or scheme for presenting discourse.

In modern usage, methodos as a noun is mostly encountered in discussions of epistemology, philosophy of science, and linguistics as a classical term. The English vocabulary uses method to indicate a particular procedure or set of rules for achieving a goal, and methodology to describe the overarching study of methods. The term Methodos may also appear as a proper name in academic projects, journals, or organizations, typically capitalized.

See also: method, methodology, epistemology, Greek philosophy, Aristotle.