The circular economy (CE) has recently become a popular discourse especially in government and corporate sectors. Given the socio-ecological challenges of the Anthropocene, the concept of CE could indeed help the transition to a sustainable, just and resilient future. However, the actual definition, objectives and forms of implementation of the CE are still unclear, inconsistent, and contested. Different actors and sectors are thus articulating circular discourses which align with their interests, and which often do not sufficiently examine the ecological, social and political implications of circularity. In this context, this research asks how to better navigate and analyse the history, complexity and plurality of circularity discourses by conceptually differentiating them in a comprehensive discourse typology. To answer this question a critical literature review has been carried out, which first, examines and reflects on the core challenges, gaps and limitations of the CE concept. Second, this research develops a comprehensive timeline of circularity thinking, which identifies and conceptually classifies 72 different CE-related concepts from the Global North and South (such as Gandhian and steady-state economics, buen vivir, doughnut economics and degrowth). This leads to the development of a typology of circularity discourses, which classifies circularity visions according to their position on fundamental social, technological, political and ecological issues. This research thus seeks to provide a basis for a more inclusive and comprehensive discussion on the topic, which opens the imaginary regarding the many circular futures that can exist and allows for a cross-pollination of ideas, policy options, strategies, practices and solutions.

循环经济（CE）最近已成为流行的话题，尤其是在政府和公司部门。鉴于人类世的社会生态挑战，CE的概念确实可以帮助过渡到可持续，公正和有弹性的未来。但是，CE的实际定义，目标和实施形式仍然不清楚，前后矛盾且存在争议。因此，不同的行为者和部门正在表达与其兴趣相一致的循环话语，而这些话语往往不足以检验循环性的生态，社会和政治含义。在这种情况下，这项研究提出了如何通过在综合性话语类型学上对它们进行历史性区分来更好地导航和分析历史，复杂性和多种循环性话语的方法。为了回答这个问题，已经进行了重要的文献综述，该综述首先检查并反思了CE概念的核心挑战，差距和局限性。其次，本研究制定了全面的循环性时间轴，该时间轴对全球北方和南方的72种与CE相关的概念进行了识别和概念分类（例如，甘迪安和稳态经济学，布恩维维尔，甜甜圈经济学和经济衰退）。这导致了循环性话语类型的发展，该循环性话语根据其在基本社会，技术，政治和生态问题上的立场对循环性愿景进行了分类。因此，这项研究旨在为就该主题进行更具包容性和全面性的讨论提供基础，