(University of the Free State, 2009) Van der Merwe, J. C.
English: The question concerning the philosophy of philosophy (metaphilosophy) has received
little attention in philosophical discourses in the last few decades, a case in point
being the debate on African philosophy. People often argue the existence or nonexistence
of African philosophy without explaining their own understanding of the
nature of philosophy. This article introduces a metaphilosophical conceptual grid
as a means to address this issue. A distinction is made between different kinds of
philosophy, as well as different types of philosophers. The grid is then applied to the
debate on African philosophy. One of the main functions of the proposed grid is to
ensure that different discourses are not confused with one another.