ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on four that are relevant for medieval philosophy: metaphysical, epistemic, logical, and linguistic. Individuation is an ambiguous word that is properly used in many senses. In the metaphysical sense, it is a certain non-temporal process whereby a universal becomes an individual. In the epistemic sense, it is a certain process whereby a knower discerns an individual. In the logical sense, it is a certain process whereby a universal concept becomes an individual concept. The problem of individuation is closely related to the problem of universals; it is its converse. Any metaphysical theory that grants some real status to universals has to confront the difficulties of accounting for individuality. In the last quarter of the thirteenth century, the problem of individuation became one of the most discussed topics in the Middle Ages and came to occupy a central place in the philosophy of the period.
