Doxography

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Doxography (Greek: δόξα - "an opinion, a point of view" + γράφειν - "to write, to describe") is a term used for the works especially of classical historians, which describe the points of view of past philosophers and scientists concerning philosophy, science, etc. The term was coined by the German classical scholar Hermann Diels. Though doxography is not an independent branch of science, its significance could hardly be overestimated.

[edit] Classic Greek philosophy

A great many philosophical works have been lost; our limited knowledge of such lost works comes chiefly through the doxographical works of later philosophers, commentators, and biographers. Philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle also act as doxographers, as their comments on the ideas of their predecessors indirectly tell us what their predecessors' beliefs were. Plato's Defense of Socrates, for example, tells us much of what we know about the natural philosophy of Anaxagoras.

[edit] Islamic doxography

Islamic doxography is an aggregate of theosophical works (like Kitab al-Maqalat by Abu Mansur Al Maturidi) concerning the aberrations in Islamic sects and streams.