sapiens
Latin for wise
Sapiens is the Latin word for "wise" or "knowing," appearing in English almost exclusively in *Homo sapiens*, the scientific name for modern humans.
Used alone, it often serves as shorthand for humanity or human nature: What separates sapiens from other primates?
The word gained wider currency from Yuval Noah Harari's bestselling book *Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind*.
Mental ability, cognitive capacity
- consciousnessState of sentient awareness
- reasoningDrawing logical conclusions
- thoughtMental concept or reflection
- awarenessState of perceiving reality
perception · understanding · memory · learning · judgment · insight · mind · brain
Genus of humanity
- homininsHuman evolutionary family members
- bipedalHaving two feet
- craniumSkull bone structure
- fossilsPreserved ancient organism traces
ancestors · primates · migration · speciation · phylogeny · paleontology · divergence · taxonomy
Collective social practices
- societyOrganized communal human existence
- civilizationAdvanced organized human society
- ethnographySystematic study of peoples
- archaeologyStudy of physical remnants
kinship · rituals · customs · traditions · mythology · religion · tribe · clan
Showing good judgment
- philosophicalConcerned with fundamental truths
- sagaciousHaving acute mental discernment
- judiciousHaving sound assessment skills
- prudentExercising sound judgment
discerning · enlightened · erudite · perceptive · rational · thoughtful · knowledgeable · learned
Differential reproductive success
- adaptationFitting to new conditions
- DarwinismNatural selection theory
- survival of the fittestAdaptive advantage perpetuates species
- geneticsScience of hereditary transmission
mutation · heritability · alleles · gene flow · genetic drift · recombination · homologous · bipedalism
intelligence
Mental ability, cognitive capacity
- consciousnessState of sentient awareness
- reasoningDrawing logical conclusions
- thoughtMental concept or reflection
awareness · perception · understanding · memory · learning · judgment · insight · mind · brain · intellect
Homo
Genus of humanity
fossils · ancestors · primates · migration · speciation · phylogeny · paleontology · divergence · taxonomy · genus
culture
Collective social practices
- societyOrganized communal human existence
- civilizationAdvanced organized human society
- ethnographySystematic study of peoples
archaeology · kinship · rituals · customs · traditions · mythology · religion · tribe · clan · artifacts
wise
Showing good judgment
- philosophicalConcerned with fundamental truths
- sagaciousHaving acute mental discernment
- judiciousHaving sound assessment skills
prudent · discerning · enlightened · erudite · perceptive · rational · thoughtful · knowledgeable · learned · insightful
natural selection
Differential reproductive success
- adaptationFitting to new conditions
- DarwinismNatural selection theory
- survival of the fittestAdaptive advantage perpetuates species
genetics · mutation · heritability · alleles · gene flow · genetic drift · recombination · homologous · bipedalism · opposable thumb
sapiensfoolish
Lacking good sense
unwise · ignorant · irrational · stupid · mindless
sapiensbrutish
Cruel and uncivilized
instinctual · bestial · feral · savage · animalistic
- Homo sapiensScientific name for humans