Home›Open Questions›Did Cynicism Have a Single Founder and Founding Moment?Open QuestionsDid Cynicism Have a Single Founder and Founding Moment?Citation FormatsGeneral ReferenceGeneral Reference Citation TextPhilosophy Atlas. "Did Cynicism Have a Single Founder and Founding Moment?." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://philosophy.interactiveatlas.org/open-questions-index/did-cynicism-have-a-single-founder.Copy General ReferenceAPA StyleAPA Style Citation TextPhilosophy Atlas. (n.d.). Did Cynicism Have a Single Founder and Founding Moment?. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://philosophy.interactiveatlas.org/open-questions-index/did-cynicism-have-a-single-founderCopy APA StyleBibTeXBibTeX Citation Text@misc{philosophyatlas-did-cynicism-have-a-single-founder-and-f, author = {Philosophy Atlas}, title = {Did Cynicism Have a Single Founder and Founding Moment?}, year = {2026}, url = {https://philosophy.interactiveatlas.org/open-questions-index/did-cynicism-have-a-single-founder}, note = {Accessed August 30, 2026} }Copy BibTeXOpen QuestionCross-Tradition ConnectionsSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)Open QuestionUnlike Plato's Academy or Zeno's Stoa, Cynicism is not attested as a formally organized school with one identifiable founder, founding place or fixed set of doctrines; ancient sources give rival, uncertain traditions crediting Antisthenes, Diogenes of Sinope, or both, and it is not even certain the two men ever met.What would resolve this A firmer body of contemporary ancient testimony fixing a specific founding teacher, place and date, which the surviving sources do not provide and later doxography likely cannot supply.OpenHistory of ancient philosophyCynicism (Encyclopedia of Philosophy via Encyclopedia.com)Cross-Tradition ConnectionsQuestion OnCynicism, Schools of Philosophy Well-attested Source Cynicism (Encyclopedia of Philosophy via Encyclopedia.com)SourcesCynicism (Encyclopedia of Philosophy via Encyclopedia.com)Comments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.View At A Past YearThe atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.Show This Year