Introduction: The doctrine of the analogy of being and its aristotelian roots

This introduction outlines some of the fundamental stages in the debate on the doctrine of the analogy of being. This classic topic has attracted a renewed attention in recent years. In particular, several scholars have become convinced that the reason why the doctrine of the analogy of being was attributed to Aristotle lies in his definition of paronymous terms in his Categories. While it has mostly been established that no doctrine of the analogy of being exists in Aristotle’s work, there remains the question of why this doctrine was attributed to him, and what reasons were used to support this claim despite important findings to the contrary, based on Aristotle’s own texts, emerging from the 15th century onwards.