Artigenda
World Philosophy Day
When: Annually, third Thursday of November.
Every third Thursday of November is World Philosophy Day. The day was created by UNESCO in 2002 to highlight the value of philosophy to society.
According to UNESCO, the value of philosophy translates to social life, and human thought and affects ourselves and our cultures. UNESCO believes it is important to have this day because philosophy or a philosophical approach has enabled people to address or solve certain issues.
Not a subject for adults only
Philosophy is not a subject for adults only. Philosophy is also important for young people, UNESCO believes. This is precisely why the organisation encourages young people on this day to immerse themselves in the world of philosophy. This is possible, for example, via the organisation’s website on the subject.
When you search for the question what is philosophy you will come across many sources. Of course, not all of these are sources you might find useful. Some sources might be a bit complicated. Actually, from that point on, you are already engaged in philosophy. You are searching for knowledge, for wisdom. In this case, for the knowledge about philosophy. Now, though, philosophy assumes that it is about more profound things. Our existence, for instance. Or the reality we live in. Other things that may be central are language, values and norms, reason or reasonableness and the human mind.
Not one kind or type
There isn’t one kind or one type of philosophy, and as for its origins, it cannot be traced back to a central point in time either. People started thinking about important things in different places. Whether that was in China or Greece. Moreover, people thought about very different things at certain periods in history. It is true, though, that the word philosophy comes from Greek.
Indeed, the word philosophia is a contraction of the words for love and wisdom. So it is fair to say that these were people (unfortunately; at the time, mainly men) who had a taste for wisdom. For knowledge.
There is a lot to be said about philosophy. Exactly how far do you want to go? What is philosophy and what is ‘just’ thinking? That sometimes makes for interesting discussions. Others can explain it much better. Or not. Because it also creates confusion. Sometimes it creates a rift between persons who believe, on the contrary, that they think they know a lot and others who become uncertain because of it.
More information
On a day like today, it is a great time to become familiar with the world of philosophy. This is possible by exploring its history. Only where do you start? If you don’t want to, then you can choose to ‘just’ look for that which is interesting. Who knows, maybe a study is an option. Perhaps this is one step too far. So, another option is this Wikipedia page.
