monogeny

Monogeny is a term used in various fields to describe a state or condition of having a single origin or source. In biology, monogeny refers to the origin of a species from a single ancestral population. This contrasts with polygeny, where a species is thought to have arisen from multiple distinct ancestral groups. The concept of monogeny has been influential in discussions about human evolution and the geographic distribution of various life forms.

In the context of language, monogeny suggests that a language family or a specific language has a single proto-language as its ancestor. This implies a unified point of origin for the linguistic diversification observed today. Similarly, in fields like geology, monogeny can refer to the formation of a geological feature or deposit from a single, localized source. The idea of a singular origin is central to understanding evolutionary processes, historical development, and the relationships between different entities, whether they are biological organisms, languages, or natural phenomena.