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Learn about the earliest Greek atomists, who developed the atomic theory and applied it to cosmology, physics, ethics, and more. Find out their biographies, writings, and main doctrines.
Aug 23, 2005 · For works on atomism in the Indian philosophical traditions, on Leucippus, Democritus, Epicurus, Lucretius, al-Rāzī, Islamic and Renaissance atomism, see primarily the relevant articles in this encyclopedia.
Aug 15, 2004 · Democritus, known in antiquity as the ‘laughing philosopher’ because of his emphasis on the value of ‘cheerfulness,’ was one of the two founders of ancient atomist theory. He elaborated a system originated by his teacher Leucippus into a materialist account of the natural world.
Aug 14, 2004 · The Greek tradition regarded Leucippus as the founder of atomism in ancient Greek philosophy. Little is known about him, and his views are hard to distinguish from those of his associate Democritus.
May 16, 2024 · Democritus’s physical and cosmological doctrines were an elaborated and systematized version of those of his teacher, Leucippus. To account for the world’s changing physical phenomena, Democritus asserted that space, or the Void, had an equal right with reality, or Being, to be considered existent.
- Who was Democritus?Democritus was an ancient Greek philosopher. He and his mentor, Leucippus, are widely regarded as the first atomists in the Grecian tradition. Alth...
- What is Democritus known for?Democritus was a central figure in the development of the atomic theory of the universe. He theorized that all material bodies are made up of indiv...
- When was Democritus born, and when did he die?Relatively little is known about the life and death of Democritus. According to most reports, Democritus was born circa 460 BCE and died some 90 ye...
- Is “democracy” named for Democritus?No. Despite its phonetic similarity to Democritus, democracy is not named for Democritus. The word democracy is actually derived from the Greek dēm...
Democritus, along with Leucippus and Epicurus, proposed the earliest views on the shapes and connectivity of atoms. They reasoned that the solidness of the material corresponded to the shape of the atoms involved.
Leucippus developed atomism along with his student, Democritus; while Leucippus is credited with the philosophy's creation, Democritus is understood to have elaborated upon it and applied it to natural phenomena.
