The discipline of formal concept analysis (FCA) is concerned with the form- ization of concepts
and conceptual thinking. Built on the solid foundation of lattice and order theory FCA is ?rst
and foremost a mathematical discipline. However its motivation andguiding principles arebasedon
strongphilosophical underpinnings. In practice FCA provides a powerful framework for the qua-
tative formal analysis of data as demonstrated by numerous applications in diverse areas.
Likewise it emphasizes the aspect of human-centered information processing by employing
visualization techniques capable of revealing inherent structure in data in an intuitively
graspable way. FCA thereby contributes to structuring and navigating the ever-growing amount of
information available in our evolving information society and supports the process of turning
data into information and ultimately into knowledge. In response to an expanding FCA community
the International Conference on Formal Concept Analysis (ICFCA) was established to provide an
annual opportunity for the exchange of ideas. Previous ICFCA conferences were held in Darmstadt
(2003) Sydney (2004) Lens (2005) Dresden (2006) Clermont- Ferrand (2007) as well as
Montreal (2008) and are evidence of vivid ongoing interest and activities in FCA theory and
applications. ICFCA 2009 took place during May 21-24 at the University of Applied S- ences in
Darmstadt. Beyond serving as a host of the very ?rst ICFCA in 2003 Darmstadt can be seen as
the birthplace of FCA itself where this discipline was introduced in the early 1980s and
elaborated over the subsequent decades.
