cosmogony

noun

cos·​mog·​o·​ny käz-ˈmä-gə-nē 

plural cosmogonies

1

: a theory of the origin of the universe

2

: the creation or origin of the world or universe

cosmogonic

ˌkäz-mə-ˈgä-nik 

adjective

or cosmogonical

ˌkäz-mə-ˈgä-ni-kəl 

cosmogonist

käz-ˈmä-gə-nist 

noun

Examples of cosmogony in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Watching this, his first feature-length attempt at adaptive cosmogony, you’re forced to contemplate your own origins. —Jason Kehe, Wired, 21 Aug. 2020

The mystical wellness center offers a mix of classic treatments, like massages and facials, along with unique experiences that align with the lunar cycle and draw inspiration from Mayan cosmogony. —Joni Sweet, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2022

The mien of the Frost Giants was reflective of their symbolic role in the Norse cosmogony. —Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 8 Aug. 2013

Giving up the memory practice, Jacob moved on to enumeration: listing, between turns at Risk, each reliable aspect of their new lives, no matter how trivial, hoping to piece together some rough cosmogony of the place. —Zach Williams, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2022

Joe Biden is a devout Catholic, yet the shape of his speech accepting the Democratic Party’s nomination at its virtual convention was based on the cosmogony of one of Christianity’s great early rivals, Manichaeanism. —Fintan O’Toole, The New York Review of Books, 24 Sep. 2020

Word History

Etymology

New Latin cosmogonia, from Greek kosmogonia, from kosmos + gonos offspring; akin to Greek genos race — more at kin

First Known Use

1696, in the meaning defined at sense 1