Atheism is the rejection of an assertion that a deity exists.[1][2][3][4] In a narrower sense, hard atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities, effectively taking the stance of a positive claim in regards to the existence of any goddess or god.[1][2][5][6] The English term 'atheist' was used at least as early as the sixteenth century and atheistic ideas and their influence have a longer history.
Philosophical atheist thought began to appear in Europe and Asia in the sixth or fifth century BCE. In ancient Greece, playwrights expressed doubt regarding the existence of gods and the antireligious philosophical school Cārvāka arose in ancient India. Materialistic philosophy was produced by the atomists Leucippus and Democritus in 5th century BCE, who explained the world in terms of the movements of atoms moving in infinite space.
The Enlightenment fueled skepticism and secularism against religion in Europe.[7][page needed]
^ abHarvey, Van A. Agnosticism and Atheism, in Flynn 2007, p. 35: "The terms ATHEISM and AGNOSTICISM lend themselves to two different definitions. The first takes the privative a both before the Greek theos (divinity) and gnosis (to know) to mean that atheism is simply the absence of belief in the gods and agnosticism is simply lack of knowledge of some specified subject matter. The second definition takes atheism to mean the explicit denial of the existence of gods and agnosticism as the position of someone who, because the existence of gods is unknowable, suspends judgment regarding them ... The first is the more inclusive and recognizes only two alternatives: Either one believes in the gods or one does not. Consequently, there is no third alternative, as those who call themselves agnostics sometimes claim. Insofar as they lack belief, they are really atheists. Moreover, since the absence of belief is the cognitive position in which everyone is born, the burden of proof falls on those who advocate religious belief. The proponents of the second definition, by contrast, regard the first definition as too broad because it includes uninformed children along with aggressive and explicit atheists. Consequently, it is unlikely that the public will adopt it."
^ abSimon Blackburn, ed. (2008). "atheism". The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy (2008 ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-954143-0. Retrieved 21 November 2013. Either the lack of belief that there exists a god, or the belief that there exists none. Sometimes thought itself to be more dogmatic than mere agnosticism, although atheists retort that everyone is an atheist about most gods, so they merely advance one step further.
^Most dictionaries (see the OneLook query for "atheism" Archived September 30, 2007, at the Wayback Machine) first list one of the more narrow definitions.
Runes, Dagobert D., ed. (1942). Dictionary of Philosophy. New Jersey: Littlefield, Adams & Co. Philosophical Library. ISBN 978-0-06-463461-8. Retrieved 9 April 2011. (a) the belief that there is no God; (b) Some philosophers have been called "atheistic" because they have not held to a belief in a personal God. Atheism in this sense means "not theistic". The former meaning of the term is a literal rendering. The latter meaning is a less rigorous use of the term though widely current in the history of thought – entry by Vergilius Ferm
^"Atheism". OxfordDictionaries.com. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 11 September 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
^Rowe 1998: "As commonly understood, atheism is the position that affirms the nonexistence of God. So an atheist is someone who disbelieves in God, whereas a theist is someone who believes in God. Another meaning of 'atheism' is simply nonbelief in the existence of God, rather than positive belief in the nonexistence of God. ... an atheist, in the broader sense of the term, is someone who disbelieves in every form of deity, not just the God of traditional Western theology."
^J.J.C. Smart (2017). "Atheism and Agnosticism". Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. Archived from the original on 11 December 2016.
^Bullivant, Stephen; Ruse, Michael, eds. (2021). The Cambridge History of Atheism. Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/9781108562324. ISBN 978-1-0090-4021-1. S2CID 227318325.
and 29 Related for: History of atheism information
Atheism is the rejection of an assertion that a deity exists. In a narrower sense, hard atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities...
Agnostic atheism or atheistic agnosticism is a philosophical position that encompasses both atheism and agnosticism. Agnostic atheists are atheistic because...
New Atheism describes the positions of some atheist academics, writers, scientists, and philosophers of the 20th and 21st centuries. New Atheism advocates...
Jewish atheism refers to the atheismof people who are ethnically and (at least to some extent) culturally Jewish. Contrary to popular belief, the term...
Hindu atheism or non-theism, which is known as Nirīśvaravāda (Sanskrit: निरीश्वर्वाद, nir-īśvara-vāda, lit. "Argument against the existence of Ishvara")...
Negative atheism, also called weak atheism and soft atheism, is any type ofatheism where a person does not believe in the existence of any deities but...
State atheism or atheist state is the incorporation of hard atheism or non-theism into political regimes. It is considered the opposite of theocracy and...
Accurate demographics ofatheism are difficult to obtain since conceptions ofatheism vary considerably across different cultures and languages, ranging...
literal existence of God. Christian atheism takes many forms and may include an ethics system, cultural Christianity, and a variety of Christian theological...
"The Necessity ofAtheism" is an essay on atheism by the English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, printed in 1811 by Charles and William Phillips in Worthing...
as an overview of and topical guide to atheism: Atheism – rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically...
original works, which practically did not contain the propaganda of materialism and atheism, to which he had just begun to join at that time, but afterwards...
The historyof religion refers to the written record of human religious feelings, thoughts, and ideas. This period of religious history begins with the...
ignorance of God doesn't constitute atheism. To be charged with the odious title ofatheism one must have the notion of God and reject it." In the period of the...
outlook to the question of the existence of God. Accurate demographics ofatheism are difficult to obtain since conceptions ofatheism and self-identification...
the argument that atheism is a religion has been described as a contradiction in terms. Jewish atheism usually refers to the atheismof people who are ethnically...
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the lack of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is simply the absence of belief that any deities...
Implicit atheism and explicit atheism are types ofatheism. In George H. Smith's Atheism: The Case Against God, "implicit atheism" is defined as "the absence...
Jewish history is the historyof the Jews, their nation, religion, and culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions, and cultures...
philosophical and political grounds, specifically rejecting their perceived atheism. When Hébert, Momoro, Ronsin, Vincent, and others were sent to the guillotine...
The historyof Wicca documents the rise of the Neopagan religion of Wicca and related witchcraft-based Neopagan religions. Wicca originated in the early...
A Rough Historyof Disbelief, known in the United States as Atheism: A Brief Historyof Disbelief, is a 2004 television documentary series written and...
phrase "God is dead". Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche Apollonian and Dionysian Zarathustra's roundelay Christian atheism Postmodern Christianity Nontheism...
called atheophobia, atheistophobia, or anti-atheism, both at present and historically, includes persecution of and discrimination against people who are...
The historyof Taoism stretches throughout Chinese history. Originating in prehistoric China, it has exerted a powerful influence over Chinese culture...
The historyof Buddhism can be traced back to the 5th century BCE. Buddhism arose in Ancient India, in and around the ancient Kingdom of Magadha, and is...
Global Information
