Insolubilia

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In the Middle Ages, scholars studied insolubilia, variants of the liar paradox. Interest revived in the 12th century, possibly inspired by Aristotle’s Sophistical Refutations, but medieval thinkers went beyond Aristotle. They did not typically cite Augustine, Cicero, or Epimenides. Around 1132, Adam of Balsham mentioned some paradoxical statements but didn’t delve into their difficulties. Later, Alexander Neckham acknowledged the paradox but did not resolve it. The first solution came from an anonymous author at the end of the 12th or start of the 13th century. By about 1320 there was a substantial body of work, with Thomas Bradwardine outlining nine views. The topic remained active in the 14th century, especially in the work of Jean Buridan. Medieval insolubilia were seen as hard but solvable, not truly insoluble, and not as central to logic as modern self‑referential paradoxes like Russell’s. A modern edition of Bradwardine’s Insolubilia, with Latin text and English translation by Stephen Read, was published in 2010.