Human

Homo sapiens idaltu (extinct)

Terminology

In general, the word people is a collective or plural term for any specific group of individual persons.

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However, when used to refer to a group of humans possessing a common ethnic, cultural or national unitary characteristic or identity, people is a singular count noun, and as such takes an "s" in the plural (examples: the English-speaking peoples of the world, the indigenous peoples of Brazil).

Related Topics:
Ethnic - Cultural - Nation

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Juvenile males are called boys, adult males men, juvenile females girls, and adult females women. Humans are commonly referred to as persons or people and collectively as Man (capital M), mankind, humanity, or the human race. Until the 20th century, human was only used adjectivally ("pertaining to mankind"). Nominal use of human (plural humans) is short for human being, and used not to be considered good style in traditional English grammar. As an adjective, human is used neutrally (as in human race), but human and especially humane may also emphasise positive aspects of human nature, and can be synonymous with benevolent (versus inhumane; c.f. humanitarian).

Related Topics:
Boy - Men - Girl - Women - Person - People - 20th century - Human nature - Humanitarian

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A distinction is maintained in philosophy and law between the notions "human being", or "man", and "person". The former refers to the species, while the latter refers to a rational agent (see, for example, John Locke's Essay concerning Human Understanding II 27 and Immanuel Kant's Introduction to the Metaphysic of Morals). The term "person" is thus used of non-human animals, and could be used of a mythical being, an artificial intelligence, or an extraterrestrial. An important question in theology and the philosophy of religion concerns whether God is a person. (See also Great ape personhood.)

Related Topics:
Philosophy - Law - Rational agent - John Locke - Immanuel Kant - Animal - Mythical being - Artificial intelligence - Extraterrestrial - Theology - Philosophy of religion - God - Great ape personhood

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In Latin, humanus is the adjectival form of the noun homo, translated as "man" (to include males and females). The Old English word man could also have this generic meaning, as demonstrated by such compounds as wifman (“female person”) → wiman → woman. For the etymology of man see mannaz.

Related Topics:
Latin - Old English - Man - Mannaz

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