Polylogic describes the integration of more than one logic domain in a single structure that still allows differentiation between each logic domain. Polylogic is not a new logic, since it respects the rules of logic in each domain, but rather an architecture of logic that allows the coexistence of different logic domains within one structure. A characteristic of a polylogic structure is that every node has at least two parents instead of just one in a classical logic structure. A polylogic structure therefore cannot be described as a tree or a hierarchy, but as a forest or an intersecting system of different hierarchies (meta-hierarchy).

Such an architecture and structure for computing has been first developed by Erez Elul. Earlier attempts under the term Polycontextual Logic were made by Gotthard Guenther at the Biological Computer Lab (BCL) of the University of Illinois (Champaign/Urbana), in the 1960ies and early 1970ies, but did not lead to operational results.

Complexity is a polylogic description

Since complexity arises with the intersection or entanglement of different logic domains as frames of reference, one can describe it polylogically. Polylogic thinking is not a new idea, but the basis of all cognition, since cognition integrates (by generating) arbitrary logic domains. Yin&Yang is a polylogic system of thought, so is quantum physics (e.g. a photon can be simultaneously described in the logic domain of a particle as well as in the different logic domain of a wave. Polylogic also must be dealt with in quantum computers, where a bit can be on and off at the same time.

In linguistics, the concept of blending comes close.

Polylogic is not related to multivalued logic oder fuzzy logic. These distinct additional values or additional ranges for values between true and false within one single logic domain.

See also: Polylogic Computing