Philomath

<p >A&nbsp;<b>philomath</b>&nbsp;(<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English" title="Help:IPA for English" >/</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Help:IPA for English" >ˈ</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Help:IPA for English" >f</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Help:IPA for English" >ɪ</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Help:IPA for English" >l</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Help:IPA for English" >ɵ</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Help:IPA for English" >m</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Help:IPA for English" >æ</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" title="Help:IPA for English" >θ</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English" title="Help:IPA for English" >/</a>; Greek: φίλος&nbsp;<i>philos</i>&nbsp;("beloved," "loving," as in&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy" title="Philosophy" >philosophy</a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philanthropy" title="Philanthropy" >philanthropy</a>) + Greek μανθάνειν&nbsp;<i>manthanein</i>,&nbsp;<i>math</i>- ("to learn," as in&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymath" title="Polymath" >polymath</a>) is a lover of learning. Philomathy is similar to, but distinguished from, philosophy in that "<i>soph</i>," the latter suffix, specifies "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisdom" title="Wisdom" >wisdom</a>" or "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knowledge" title="Knowledge" >knowledge</a>", rather than the process of&nbsp;<i>acquisition</i>thereof.

"Philomath" is not synonymous with "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymath" title="Polymath" >polymath</a>." A philomath is a seeker of knowledge and facts, while a polymath is a possessor of knowledge in multiple fields.

The shift in meaning for "mathema" is likely a result of the rapid categorization during the time of&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plato" title="Plato" >Plato</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotle" title="Aristotle" >Aristotle</a>&nbsp;of their "mathemata" in terms of&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education" title="Education" >education</a>:&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arithmetic" title="Arithmetic" >arithmetic</a>,<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geometry" title="Geometry" >geometry</a>,&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomy" title="Astronomy" >astronomy</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_theory" title="Music theory" >music</a>&nbsp;(the&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quadrivium" title="Quadrivium" >Quadrivium</a>), which the Greeks found to create a "natural grouping" of mathematical (in our modern usage; "doctrina mathematica" for theirs) precepts.</p>