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DEVIL

A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions.[1] It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force.[2] Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of the devil can be summed up as 1) a principle of evil independent from God, 2) an aspect of God, 3) a created being turning evil (a fallen angel), and 4) a symbol of human evil.[3]: 23 

Each tradition, culture, and religion with a devil in its mythos offers a different lens on manifestations of evil.[4] The history of these perspectives intertwines with theology, mythology, psychiatry, art, and literature developing independently within each of the traditions.[5] It occurs historically in many contexts and cultures, and is given many different names—Satan, Lucifer, Beelzebub, Mephistopheles, Iblis—and attributes: it is portrayed as blue, black, or red; it is portrayed as having horns on its head, and without horns, and so on.[6][7] While depictions of the devil are usually taken seriously, there are times when it is treated less seriously; when, for example, devil figures are used in advertising and on candy wrappers.

Etymology

The Modern English word devil derives from the Middle English devel, from the Old English dēofol, that in turn represents an early Germanic borrowing of the Latin diablos. This in turn was borrowed from the Greek διάβολος diablos, "slanderer",[9] from διαβάλλειν diabállein, "to slander" from διά diá, "across, through" and βάλλειν bállein, "to hurl", probably akin to the Sanskrit gurate, "he lifts up".[10]

Definitions

In his book The Devil: Perceptions of Evil from Antiquity to Primitive Christianity, Jeffrey Burton Russell discusses various meanings and difficulties that are encountered when using the term devil. He does not claim to define the word in a general sense, but he describes the limited use that he intends for the word in his book—limited in order to "minimize this difficulty" and "for the sake of clarity". In this book Russell uses the word devil as "the personification of evil found in a variety of cultures", as opposed to the word Satan, which he reserves specifically for the figure in the Abrahamic religions.[11]

In the Introduction to his book Satan: A Biography, Henry Ansgar Kelly discusses various considerations and meanings that he has encountered in using terms such as devil and Satan, etc. While not offering a general definition, he describes that in his book "whenever diabolos is used as the proper name of Satan", he signals it by using "small caps".[12]

The Oxford English Dictionary has a variety of definitions for the meaning of "devil", supported by a range of citations: "Devil" may refer to Satan, the supreme spirit of evil, or one of Satan's emissaries or demons that populate Hell, or to one of the spirits that possess a demonic person; "devil" may refer to one of the "malignant deities" feared and worshiped by "heathen people", a demon, a malignant being of superhuman powers; figuratively "devil" may be applied to a wicked person, or playfully to a rogue or rascal, or in empathy often accompanied by the word "poor" to a person—"poor devil".[13]

Baháʼí Faith

In the Baháʼí Faith, a malevolent, superhuman entity such as a devil or satan is not believed to exist.[14] These terms do, however, appear in the Baháʼí writings, where they are used as metaphors for the lower nature of man. Human beings are seen to have free will, and are thus able to turn towards God and develop spiritual qualities or turn away from God and become immersed in their self-centered desires. Individuals who follow the temptations of the self and do not develop spiritual virtues are often described in the Baháʼí writings with the word satanic.[14] The Baháʼí writings also state that the devil is a metaphor for the "insistent self" or "lower self" which is a self-serving inclination within each individual. Those who follow their lower nature are also described as followers of "the Evil One"

Christianity

In Christianity, evil is incarnate in the devil or Satan, a fallen angel who is the primary opponent of God.[17][18] Some Christians also considered the Roman and Greek deities as devils.[6][7]

Christianity describes Satan as a fallen angel who terrorizes the world through evil,[17] is the antithesis of truth,[19] and shall be condemned, together with the fallen angels who follow him, to eternal fire at the Last Judgment.[17]

In mainstream Christianity, the devil is usually referred to as Satan. This is because Christian beliefs in Satan are inspired directly by the dominant view of Second Temple Judaism (recorded in the Enochian books), as expressed/practiced by Jesus, and with some minor variations. Some modern Christians[who?] consider the devil to be an angel who, along with one-third of the angelic host (the demons), rebelled against God and has consequently been condemned to the Lake of Fire. He is described[attribution needed] as hating all humanity (or more accurately creation), opposing God, spreading lies and wreaking havoc on their souls.

Horns of a goat and a ram, goat's fur and ears, nose and canines of a pig; a typical depiction of the devil in Christian art. The goat, ram and pig are consistently associated with the devil.[20] Detail of a 16th-century painting by Jacob de Backer in the National Museum in Warsaw.

Satan is traditionally identified as the serpent who convinced Eve to eat the forbidden fruit; thus, Satan has often been depicted as a serpent.

In the Bible, the devil is identified with "the dragon" and "the old serpent" seen in the Book of Revelation,[21] as has "the prince of this world" in the Gospel of John;[22] and "the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience" in the Epistle to the Ephesians;[23] and "the god of this world" in 2 Corinthians 4:4.[24] He is also identified as the dragon in the Book of Revelation[25] and the tempter of the Gospels.[26]

The devil is sometimes called Lucifer, particularly when describing him as an angel before his fall, although the use of Lucifer (Latin lúcifer, "bringer of light"), the "son of the dawn", in Isaiah 14:12 is a reference to a Babylonian king.[27]

Beelzebub is originally the name of a Philistine god (more specifically a certain type of Baal, from Ba'al Zebûb, lit. "Lord of Flies") but is also used in the New Testament as a synonym for the devil. A corrupted version, "Belzeboub", appears in The Divine Comedy (Inferno XXXIV).

In other, non-mainstream, Christian beliefs (e.g. the beliefs of the Christadelphians) the word "satan" in the Bible is not regarded as referring to a supernatural, personal being but to any 'adversary' and figuratively refers to human sin and temptation.[28]

Apocrypha/Deuterocanon

See also: Apocrypha, Biblical apocrypha, and Deuterocanonical books

In the Book of Wisdom, the devil is represented as the one who brought death into the world.[29] The Second Book of Enoch contains references to a Watcher called Satanael,[30] describing him as the prince of the Grigori who was cast out of heaven[31] and an evil spirit who knew the difference between what was "righteous" and "sinful".[32]

In the Book of Jubilees, Satan rules over a host of angels.[33] Mastema, who induced God to test Abraham through the sacrifice of Isaac, is identical with Satan in both name and nature.[34] The Book of Enoch contains references to Sathariel, thought also[by whom?] to be Sataniel and Satan'el. The similar spellings mirror that of his angelic brethren Michael, Raphael, Uriel, and Gabriel, previous to his expulsion from Heaven.[citation needed]

Gnostic religions

See also: Demiurge § Gnosticism

A lion-faced deity found on a Gnostic gem in Bernard de Montfaucon's L'antiquité expliquée et représentée en figures may be a depiction of the Demiurge.

Gnostic and Gnostic-influenced religions postulate the idea that the material world is inherently evil. The One true God is remote, beyond the material universe, therefore this universe must be governed by an inferior imposter deity. This deity was identified with the deity of the Old Testament by some sects, such as the Sethians and the Marcions. Tertullian accuses Marcion of Sinope, that he

[held that] the Old Testament was a scandal to the faithful … and … accounted for it by postulating [that Jehovah was] a secondary deity, a demiurgus, who was god, in a sense, but not the supreme God; he was just, rigidly just, he had his good qualities, but he was not the good god, who was Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ.[35]

John Arendzen (1909) in the Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) mentions that Eusebius accused Apelles, the 2nd-century AD Gnostic, of considering the Inspirer of Old Testament prophecies to be not a god, but an evil angel.[36] These writings commonly refer to the Creator of the material world as "a demiurgus"[35] to distinguish him from the One true God. Some texts, such as the Apocryphon of John and On the Origin of the World, not only demonized the Creator God but also called him by the name of the devil in some Jewish writings, Samael.[37]

Catharism

In the 12th century in Europe the Cathars, who were rooted in Gnosticism, dealt with the problem of evil, and developed ideas of dualism and demonology. The Cathars were seen as a serious potential challenge to the Catholic church of the time. The Cathars split into two camps. The first is absolute dualism, which held that evil was completely separate from the good God, and that God and the devil each had power. The second camp is mitigated dualism, which considers Lucifer to be a son of God, and a brother to Christ. To explain this they used the parable of the prodigal son, with Christ as the good son, and Lucifer as the son that strayed into evilness. The Catholic Church responded to dualism in AD 1215 in the Fourth Lateran Council, saying that God created everything from nothing, and the devil was good when he was created, but he made himself bad by his own free will.[38][39] In the Gospel of the Secret Supper, Lucifer, just as in prior Gnostic systems, appears as a demiurge, who created the material world.[40]

Islam

Main articles: Azazil and Iblis

See also: Satan § Islam

Iblis (top right on the picture) refuses to prostrate before the newly created Adam from a Persian miniature

In Islam, the principle of evil is expressed by two terms referring to the same entity:[41][42][43] Shaitan (meaning astray, distant or devil) and Iblis. Iblis is the proper name of the devil representing the characteristics of evil.[44] Iblis is mentioned in the Quranic narrative about the creation of humanity. When God created Adam, he ordered the angels to prostrate themselves before him. All did, but Iblis refused and claimed to be superior to Adam out of pride. [Quran 7:12] Therefore, pride but also envy became a sign of "unbelief" in Islam.[44] Thereafter Iblis was condemned to Hell, but God granted him a request to lead humanity astray,[45] knowing the righteous will resist Iblis' attempts to misguide them. In Islam, both good and evil are ultimately created by God. But since God's will is good, the evil in the world must be part of God's plan.[46] Actually, God allowed the devil to seduce humanity. Evil and suffering are regarded as a test or a chance to proof confidence in God.[46] Some philosophers and mystics emphasized Iblis himself as a role model of confidence in God, because God ordered the angels to prostrate themselves, Iblis was forced to choose between God's command and God's will (not to praise someone else than God). He successfully passed the test, yet his disobedience caused his punishment and therefore suffering. However, he stays patient and is rewarded in the end.[47]

Muslims hold that the pre-Islamic jinn, tutelary deities, became subject under Islam to the judgment of God, and that those who did not submit to the law of God are devils.[48]

Although Iblis is often compared to the devil in Christian theology, Islam rejects the idea that Satan is an opponent of God and the implied struggle between God and the devil.[clarification needed] Iblis might either be regarded as the most monotheistic or the greatest sinner, but remains only a creature of God. Iblis did not become an unbeliever due to his disobedience, but because of attributing injustice to God; that is, by asserting that the command to prostrate himself before Adam was inappropriate.[49] There is no sign of angelic revolt in the Quran and no mention of Iblis trying to take God's throne[50][51] and Iblis's sin could be forgiven at anytime by God.[52] According to the Quran, Iblis's disobedience was due to his disdain for humanity, a narrative already occurring in early New Testament apocrypha.[53]

As in Christianity, Iblis was once a pious creature of God but later cast out of Heaven due to his pride. However, to maintain God's absolute sovereignty,[54] Islam matches the line taken by Irenaeus instead of the later Christian consensus that the devil did not rebel against God but against humanity.[55][42] Further, although Iblis is generally regarded as a real bodily entity,[56] he plays a less significant role as the personification of evil than in Christianity. Iblis is merely a tempter, notable for inciting humans into sin by whispering into humans minds (waswās), akin to the Jewish idea of the devil as yetzer hara.[57][58]

On the other hand, Shaitan refers unilaterally to forces of evil, including the devil Iblis, then he causes mischief.[59] Shaitan is also linked to humans psychological nature, appearing in dreams, causing anger or interrupting the mental preparation for prayer.[56] Furthermore, the term Shaitan also refers to beings, who follow the evil suggestions of Iblis. Furthermore, the principle of Shaitan is in many ways a symbol of spiritual impurity, representing humans' own deficits, in contrast to a "true Muslim", who is free from anger, lust and other devilish desires.[60]

In Sufism and mysticism

See also: Nafs

In contrast to Occidental philosophy, the Sufi idea of seeing "Many as One", and considering the creation in its essence as the Absolute, leads to the idea of the dissolution of any dualism between the ego substance and the "external" substantial objects. The rebellion against God, mentioned in the Quran, takes place on the level of the psyche, that must be trained and disciplined for its union with the spirit that is pure. Since psyche drives the body, flesh is not the obstacle to humans but rather an unawareness that allows the impulsive forces to cause rebellion against God on the level of the psyche. Yet it is not a dualism between body, psyche and spirit, since the spirit embraces both psyche and corporeal aspects of humanity.[61] Since the world is held to be the mirror in which God's attributes are reflected, participation in worldly affairs is not necessarily seen as opposed to God.[57] The devil activates the selfish desires of the psyche, leading the human astray from the Divine.[62] Thus it is the I that is regarded as evil, and both Iblis and Pharao are present as symbols for uttering "I" in ones own behavior. Therefore it is recommended to use the term I as little as possible. It is only God who has the right to say "I", since it is only God who is self-subsistent. Uttering "I" is therefore a way to compare oneself to God, regarded as shirk.[63]

In Salafism

See also: Taghut

Salafi strands of Islam commonly emphasize a dualistic worldview between the believers and the unbelievers,[64] with the devil as the enemy of God's path. Even though the devil will be finally defeated by God, he is a serious and dangerous opponent of humans.[65] While in classical hadiths, the demons (Shayateen) and the jinn are responsible for impurity and possibly endanger people, in Salafi thought, it is the devil himself, who lurks on the believers,[66] always striving to lead them astray from God. The devil is regarded as an omnipresent entity, permanently inciting humans into sin, but can be pushed away by remembering the name God.[67] The devil is regarded as an external entity, threatening the everyday life of the believer, even in social aspects of life.[68] Thus for example, it is the devil who is responsible for Western emancipation.[69]

Judaism

Further information: Satan § Judaism

Yahweh, the god in pre-exilic Judaism, created both good and evil, as stated in Isaiah 45:7: "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things." The devil does not exist in Jewish scriptures. However, the influence of Zoroastrianism during the Achaemenid Empire introduced evil as a separate principle into the Jewish belief system, which gradually externalized the opposition until the Hebrew term satan developed into a specific type of supernatural entity, changing the monistic view of Judaism into a dualistic one.[70] Later, Rabbinic Judaism rejected[when?] the Enochian books (written during the Second Temple period under Persian influence), which depicted the devil as an independent force of evil besides God.[71] After the apocalyptic period, references to Satan in the Tanakh are thought[by whom?] to be allegorical.[72]

Mandaeism

Main article: World of Darkness (Mandaeism)

See also: Mandaeism and Ruha

In Mandaean mythology, Ruha fell apart from the World of Light and became the queen of the World of Darkness, also referred to as Sheol.[73][74][75] She is considered evil and a liar, sorcerer and seductress.[76]: 541 She gives birth to Ur, also referred to as Leviathan. He is portrayed as a large, ferocious dragon or snake and is considered the king of the World of Darkness.[74] Together they rule the underworld and create the seven planets and twelve zodiac constellations.[74] Also found in the underworld is Krun, the greatest of the five Mandaean Lords of the underworld. He dwells in the lowest depths of creation and his epithet is the 'mountain of flesh'.[77]: 251  Prominent infernal beings found in the World of Darkness include lilith, nalai (vampire), niuli (hobgoblin), latabi (devil), gadalta (ghost), satani (Satan) and various other demons and evil spirits.[74][73]

Manichaeism

Main article: Prince of darkness (Manichaeism)

In Manichaeism, God and the devil are two unrelated principles. God created good and inhabits the realm of light, while the devil (also called the prince of darkness[78][79]) created evil and inhabits the kingdom of darkness. The contemporary world came into existence, when the kingdom of darkness assaulted the kingdom of light and mingled with the spiritual world.[80] At the end, the devil and his followers will be sealed forever and the kingdom of light and the kingdom of darkness will continue to co-exist eternally, never to commingle again.[81]

Hegemonius (4th century CE) accuses that the Persian prophet Mani, founder of the Manichaean sect in the 3rd century CE, identified Jehovah as "the devil god which created the world"[82] and said that "he who spoke with Moses, the Jews, and the priests … is the [Prince] of Darkness, … not the god of truth."[78][79]

Tengrism

Among the Tengristic myths of central Asia, Erlik refers to a devil-like figure as the ruler of Tamag (Hell), who was also the first human. According to one narrative, Erlik and God swam together over the primordial waters. When God was about to create the Earth, he send Erlik to dive into the waters and collect some mud. Erlik hid some inside his mouth to later create his own world. But when God commanded the Earth to expand, Erlik got troubled by the mud in his mouth. God aided Erlik to spit it out. The mud carried by Erlik gave place to the unpleasant areas of the world. Because of his sin, he was assigned to evil. In another variant, the creator-god is identified with Ulgen. Again, Erlik appears to be the first human. He desired to create a human just as Ulgen did, thereupon Ulgen reacted by punishing Erlik, casting him into the Underworld where he becomes its ruler.[83][84]

According to Tengrism, there is no death, meaning that, when life comes to an end, it is merely a transition into the invisible world. As the ruler of Hell, Erlik enslaves the souls, who are damned to Hell. Further, he lurks on the souls of those humans living on Earth by causing death, disease and illnesses. At the time of birth, Erlik sends a Kormos to seize the soul of the newborn, following him for the rest of his life in an attempt to seize his soul by hampering, misguiding, and injuring him. When Erlik succeeds in destroying a human's body, the Kormos sent by Erlik will try take him down into the Underworld. However a good soul will be brought to Paradise by a Yayutshi sent by Ulgen.[85] Some shamans also made sacrifices to Erlik, for gaining a higher rank in the Underworld, if they should be damned to Hell.

Yazidism

According to Yazidism there is no entity that represents evil in opposition to God; such dualism is rejected by Yazidis,[86] and evil is regarded as nonexistent.[87] Yazidis adhere to strict monism and are prohibited from uttering the word "devil" and from speaking of anything related to Hell.[88]

Zoroastrianism

Main articles: Angra Mainyu and Dualistic cosmology

Ahriman Div being slain during a scene from the Shahnameh

Zoroastrianism probably introduced the first idea of the devil; a principle of evil independently existing apart from God.[89] In Zoroastrianism, good and evil derive from two ultimately opposed forces.[90] The force of good is called Ahura Mazda and the "destructive spirit" in the Avestan language is called Angra Mainyu. The Middle Persian equivalent is Ahriman. They are in eternal struggle and neither is all-powerful, especially Angra Mainyu is limited to space and time: in the end of time, he will be finally defeated. While Ahura Mazda creates what is good, Angra Mainyu is responsible for every evil and suffering in the world, such as toads and scorpions.[89] Iranian Zoroastrians also considered the Daeva as devil creature, because of this in the Shahnameh, it is mentioned as both Ahriman Div (Persian: اهریمن دیو, romanized: Ahriman Div) as a devil.

Devil in moral philosophy

Spinoza

A non-published manuscript of Spinoza's Ethics contained a chapter (Chapter XXI) on the devil, where Spinoza examined whether the devil may exist or not. He defines the devil as an entity which is contrary to God.[91]: 46 [92]: 150  However, if the devil is the opposite of God, the devil would consist of Nothingness, which does not exist.[91]: 145  On a paper called On Devils he writes that we can a priori find out that such a thing cannot exist. Because the duration of a thing results in its degree of perfection, and the more essence a thing possess the more lasting it is, and since the devil has no perfection at all, it is impossible for the devil to be an existing thing.[93]: 72  Evil or immoral behaviour in humans, such as anger, hate, envy, and all things for which the devil is blamed for could be explained without the proposal of a devil.[91]: 145  Thus, the devil doesn't have any explanatory power and should be dismissed (Occam's razor). In Spinoza's philosophical worldview, moral evil doesn't exist. By following a strict determinism, individuals are not depicted as moral agents, making evil choices, but as beings affected by emotions. Such emotions are rather comparable to a weakness or illness than evil.[91]: 150 

Kant

Engraving of Immanuel Kant

In Religion Within the Limits of Reason Alone, Immanuel Kant uses the devil as the personification of maximum moral reprehensibility. Deviating from the common Christian idea, Kant does not locate the morally reprehensible in sensual urges. Since evil has to be intelligible, only when the sensual is consciously placed above the moral obligation something can be regarded as morally evil. Thus, to be evil, the devil must be able to comprehend moral but consciously reject it, and, as a spiritual being (Geistwesen), having no relation to any form of sensual pleasure. It is necessarily required for the devil to be a spiritual being, because if the devil were also a sensual, it would be possible that the devil does evil to satisfy lower sensual desires, and doesn't act from the mind alone. The devil acts against morals, not to satisfy a sensual lust, but solely for the sake of evil. As such, the devil is unselfish, for he does not benefit from his evil deeds. However, Kant denies that a human being could ever be completely devilish. Kant admits that there are devilish vices (ingratitude, envy, and malicious joy), i.e., vices that do not bring any personal advantage, but a person can never be completely a devil. In his Lecture on Moral Philosophy (1774/75) Kant gives an example of a tulip seller who was in possession of a rare tulip, but when he learned that another seller had the same tulip, he bought it from him and then destroyed it instead to keeping it for himself. If he had acted according to his sensual in according to his urges, the seller would have kept the tulip for himself to make profit, but not have destroyed it. Nevertheless, the destruction of the tulip cannot be completely absolved from sensual impulses, since a sensual joy or relief still accompanies the destruction of the tulip and therefore cannot be thought of solely as a violation of morality

.

ANGELS

In various theistic religious traditions, an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.

Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity.[1][2] Other roles include protectors and guides for humans, such as guardian angels, and servants of God.[3] Abrahamic religions describe angelic hierarchies, which vary by religion and sect. Some angels have specific names (such as Gabriel or Michael) or titles (such as seraph or archangel). Those expelled from Heaven are called fallen angels, distinct from the heavenly host.

Angels in art are usually shaped like humans of extraordinary beauty, though this is not always the case—sometimes, they can be portrayed in a frightening, inhuman manner.[4] They are often identified in Christian artwork with bird wings,[5] halos,[6] and divine light.

Abrahamic religions[edit]

Judaism[edit]

Main article: Angels in Judaism

In Judaism, angels (Hebrew: מַלְאָךְ‎ mal'āḵ; "messenger"), are understood through interpretation of the Tanakh and in a long tradition as supernatural beings who stand by God in heaven, but are strictly to be distinguished from God (YHWH) and are subordinate to him. Occasionally, they can show selected people God's will and instructions.[14] In the Jewish tradition they are also inferior to humans since they have no will of their own and are able to carry out only one divine command.[15]

Hebrew Bible[edit]

Three angels hosted by Abraham, Ludovico Carracci (c. 1610–1612), Bologna, Pinacoteca Nazionale

Tobias and the Angel by Filippino Lippi, created between c. 1472 and c. 1482

The Torah uses the Hebrew terms מלאך אלהים (mal'āk̠ 'ĕlōhîm; "messenger of God"), מלאך יהוה (mal'āk̠ Yahweh; "messenger of the Lord"), בני אלהים (bənē 'ĕlōhîm; "sons of God") and הקודשים (haqqôd̠əšîm; "the holy ones") to refer to beings traditionally interpreted as angels. Later texts use other terms, such as העליונים (hā'elyônîm; "the upper ones").[citation needed]

The term 'מלאך' ('mal'āk̠') is also used in other books of the Hebrew Bible. Depending on the context, the Hebrew word may refer to a human messenger or to a supernatural messenger. A human messenger might be a prophet or priest, such as Malachi, "my messenger"; the Greek superscription in the Septuagint translation states the Book of Malachi was written "by the hand of his messenger" ἀγγέλου (angélu). Examples of a supernatural messenger[16] are the "Malak YHWH," who is either a messenger from God,[17] an aspect of God (such as the logos),[18] or God himself as the messenger (the "theophanic angel.")[16][19]

Michael D. Coogan notes that it is only in the late books that the terms "come to mean the benevolent semi-divine beings familiar from later mythology and art."[20] Daniel is the biblical book to refer to individual angels by name,[21] mentioning Gabriel in Daniel 9:21 and Michael in Daniel 10:13. These angels are part of Daniel's apocalyptic visions and are an important part of apocalyptic literature.[20][22]

In Daniel 7, Daniel receives a dream-vision from God. [...] As Daniel watches, the Ancient of Days takes his seat on the throne of heaven and sits in judgement in the midst of the heavenly court [...] an [angel] like a son of man approaches the Ancient One in the clouds of heaven and is given everlasting kingship.[23]

Coogan explains the development of this concept of angels: "In the postexilic period, with the development of explicit monotheism, these divine beings—the 'sons of God' who were members of the Divine Council—were in effect demoted to what are now known as 'angels', understood as beings created by God, but immortal and thus superior to humans."[20] This conception of angels is best understood in contrast to demons and is often thought to be "influenced by the ancient Persian religious tradition of Zoroastrianism, which viewed the world as a battleground between forces of good and forces of evil, between light and darkness."[20] One of these is hāššāṭān, a figure depicted in (among other places) the Book of Job.

Rabbinic Judaism[edit]

According to Rabbinic Judaism, the angels have no bodies, but are eternally living creatures created out of fire. The Babylonian Talmud reads as "The Torah was not given to ministering angels." (לא נתנה תורה למלאכי השרת) usually understood as a concession to human's imperfection, in contrast to the angels.[24] Thus, they occasionally appear in Midrashim as competition with humans.[25] The angels as heavenly beings, strictly following the laws of God, become jealous of God's affection for man. Humans, by following the Torah, in prayer, by resisting evil instincts (yetzer hara) and by teshuva, are preferred to the flawless angels. As a result, they are also inferior to humans in the Jewish tradition. In the Midrash, the plural of El (Elohim) used in Genesis in relation to the creation of human beings is explained by the presence of angels: God therefore consulted with the angels, but made the final decision alone. This story serves as an example, teaching that the powerful should also consult with the weak. God's own final decision highlights God's undisputable omnipotence.[25]

In post-Biblical Judaism,[clarification needed] certain angels took on particular significance and developed unique personalities and roles. Although these archangels were believed to rank among the heavenly host, no systematic hierarchy ever developed. Metatron is considered one of the highest of the angels in Merkabah and Kabbalah mysticism and often serves as a scribe; he is briefly mentioned in the Talmud[26] and figures prominently in Merkabah mystical texts. Michael, who serves as a warrior[27] and advocate for Israel (Daniel 10:13), is looked upon particularly fondly.[28] Gabriel is mentioned in the Book of Daniel (Daniel 8:15–17) and briefly in the Talmud,[29] as well as in many Merkabah mystical texts. There is no evidence in Judaism for the worship of angels, but there is evidence for the invocation and sometimes even conjuration of angels.[21]

Philo of Alexandria identifies the angel with the Logos inasmuch as the angel is the immaterial voice of God. The angel is something different from God himself, but is conceived as God's instrument.[30]

Four classes of ministering angels minister and utter praise before the Holy One, blessed be He: the first camp (led by) Michael on His right, the second camp (led by) Gabriel on His left, the third camp (led by) Uriel before Him, and the fourth camp (led by) Raphael behind Him; and the Shekhinah of the Holy One, blessed be He, is in the centre. He is sitting on a throne high and exalted[31]

Later interpretations[edit]

According to Kabbalah, there are four worlds and our world is the last world: the world of action (Assiyah). Angels exist in the worlds above as a 'task' of God. They are an extension of God to produce effects in this world. After an angel has completed its task, it ceases to exist. The angel is in effect the task. This is derived from the book of Genesis when Abraham meets with three angels and Lot meets with two. The task of one of the angels was to inform Sara and Abraham of their coming child. The other two were to save Lot and to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.[21]

Jewish philosopher Maimonides explained his view of angels in his Guide for the Perplexed II:4 and II

... This leads Aristotle in turn to the demonstrated fact that God, glory and majesty to Him, does not do things by direct contact. God burns things by means of fire; fire is moved by the motion of the sphere; the sphere is moved by means of a disembodied intellect, these intellects being the 'angels which are near to Him', through whose mediation the spheres move ... thus totally disembodied minds exist which emanate from God and are the intermediaries between God and all the bodies [objects] here in this world.

— Guide for the Perplexed II:4, Maimonides

Maimonides had a neo-Aristotelian interpretation of the Bible. Maimonides writes that to the wise man, one sees that what the Bible and Talmud refer to as "angels" are actually allusions to the various laws of nature; they are the principles by which the physical universe operates.

For all forces are angels! How blind, how perniciously blind are the naive?! If you told someone who purports to be a sage of Israel that the Deity sends an angel who enters a woman's womb and there forms an embryo, he would think this a miracle and accept it as a mark of the majesty and power of the Deity, despite the fact that he believes an angel to be a body of fire one third the size of the entire world. All this, he thinks, is possible for God. But if you tell him that God placed in the sperm the power of forming and demarcating these organs, and that this is the angel, or that all forms are produced by the Active Intellect; that here is the angel, the "vice-regent of the world" constantly mentioned by the sages, then he will recoil.– Guide for the Perplexed II:4

One of Melozzo's musician (seraphim) angels from the Basilica dei Santi Apostoli, now in the sacristy of St. Peter's Basilica

Angel of the Revelation by William Blake, created between c. 1803 and c. 1805

Individuals[edit]

From the Jewish Encyclopedia, entry "Angelology".[21]

Michael (archangel) (translation: who is like God?), kindness of God, and stands up for the children of mankind

Gabriel (archangel) (translation: God is my strength), performs acts of justice and power

(Only these two angels are mentioned by name in the Hebrew Bible; the rest are from extra-biblical tradition.)

Jophiel (translation: Beauty of God), expelled Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden holding a flaming sword and punishes those who transgress against God.

Raphael (archangel) (translation: It is God who heals), God's healing force

Uriel (archangel) (translation: God is my light), leads humanity to destiny

Samael (archangel) (translation: Venom of God), angel of death—see also Malach HaMavet (translation: the angel of death)

Sandalphon (archangel) (translation: bringing together), battles Samael and brings mankind together

Christianity[edit]

The Divine Comedy, Paradise (Paradiso), illustration by Gustave Doré

The Divine Comedy, Paradise, illustration by Gustave Doré

The Divine Comedy, Paradise, illustration by Gustave Doré

Main article: Christian angelology

Christians inherited Jewish understandings of angels, which in turn may have been partly inherited from the Egyptians.[32] In the early stage, the Christian concept of an angel characterized the angel as a messenger of God. Later came identification of individual angelic messengers: Gabriel, Michael, Raphael, and Uriel.[33] Then, in the space of little more than two centuries (from the 3rd to the 5th) the image of angels took on definite characteristics both in theology and in art.[34] Ellen Muehlberger has argued that in late antiquity, angels were conceived of as one type of being among many, whose primary purpose was to guard and to guide Christians.[35]

Christian Bible[edit]

Angels are represented throughout Christian Bibles as spiritual beings intermediate between God and humans: "Yet you have made them [humans] a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor." (Psalms 8:4–5). Christians believe that angels are created beings, based on (Psalms 148:2–5; Colossians 1:16). Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible refer to intermediary beings, as angels, instead of daimons, thus giving raise to a distinction between demons and angels.[citation needed] In the Old Testament, both benevolent and fierce angels are mentioned, but never called demons. The symmetry lies between angels sent by God, and intermediary spirits of foreign deities, not in good and evil deeds.[36]

In the New Testament, the existence of angels, just like that of demons, is taken for granted.[37] They can intervene and intercede on behalf of humans. Angels protect the righteous (Matthew 4:6, Luke 4:10). They dwell in the heavens (Matthew 28:2, John 1:51), act as God's warriors (Matthew 26:53) and worship God (Luke 2:13).[38] In the parable of the Rich man and Lazarus, angels behave as psychopomps. The Resurrection of Jesus features angels, telling the woman that Jesus is no longer in the tomb, but has risen from the dead.[39]

Interaction with humans[edit]

Kristus i Getsemane (1873), an angel comforting Jesus before his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, by Carl Heinrich Bloch (1834–1890)

Forget not to show love unto strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.—Hebrews 13:2

Three separate cases of angelic interaction deal with the births of John the Baptist and Jesus. In Luke 1:11, an angel appears to Zechariah to inform him that he will have a child despite his old age, thus proclaiming the birth of John the Baptist. In Luke 1:26 Gabriel visits Mary in the Annunciation to foretell the birth of Jesus. Angels proclaim the birth of Jesus in the Adoration of the shepherds in Luke 2:10.[40]

According to Matthew 4:11, after Jesus spent 40 days in the desert, "...the Devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him." In Luke 22:43 an angel comforts Jesus during the Agony in the Garden.[41] In Matthew 28:5 an angel speaks at the empty tomb, following the Resurrection of Jesus and the rolling back of the stone by angels.[40]

In 1851 Pope Pius IX approved the Chaplet of Saint Michael based on the 1751 reported private revelation from archangel Michael to the Carmelite nun Antonia d'Astonac.[42] In a biography of Gemma Galgani written by Germanus Ruoppolo, Galgani stated that she had spoken with her guardian angel.

Pope John Paul II emphasized the role of angels in Catholic teachings in his 1986 address titled "Angels Participate In History Of Salvation", in which he suggested that modern mentality should come to see the importance of angels.[43]

According to the Vatican's Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, "The practice of assigning names to the Holy Angels should be discouraged, except in the cases of Gabriel, Raphael and Michael whose names are contained in Holy Scripture."[44]

Theology[edit]

Further information: Christian theology

According to Augustine of Hippo, "'Angel' is the name of their office, not of their nature. If you seek the name of their nature, it is 'spirit'; if you seek the name of their office, it is 'angel': from what they are, 'spirit', from what they do, 'angel'."[45] Gregory of Nazianzus thought that angels were made as "spirits" and "flames of fire", following Hebrews 1, and that they can be identified with the "thrones, dominions, rulers and authorities" of Colossians 1.[35]

By the late 4th century, the Church Fathers agreed that there were different categories of angels, with appropriate missions and activities assigned to them. There was, however, some disagreement regarding the nature of angels. Some argued that angels had physical bodies,[46] while some maintained that they were entirely spiritual. Some theologians had proposed that angels were not divine but on the level of immaterial beings subordinate to the Trinity. The resolution of this Trinitarian dispute included the development of doctrine about angels.[47]

Forty Gospel Homilies by Pope Gregory I (c. 540 – 12 March 604) noted angels and archangels.[48] The Fourth Lateran Council's (1215) Firmiter credimus decree (issued against the Albigenses) declared that the angels were created beings and that men were created after them. The First Vatican Council (1869) repeated this declaration in Dei Filius, the "Dogmatic constitution on the Catholic faith".

Thomas Aquinas (13th century) relates angels to Aristotle's metaphysics in his Summa contra Gentiles,[49] Summa Theologica,[50] and in De substantiis separatis,[51] a treatise on angelology. Although angels have greater knowledge than men, they are not omniscient, as Matthew 24:36 points out.[52] According to the Summa Theologica, angels were created instantaneously by God in a state of grace in the Empyrean Heaven (LXI. 4) at the same time when he created all the contents of the corporeal world (LXI. 3). They are pure spirits whose life consists in knowledge and love. Being bodiless, their knowledge is intellectual and not through senses (LIV. 5). Differently from humans, their knowledge is not acquired from the exterior world; moreover they attain to the truth of a thing at a single glance without need of reasoning (LV. a; LVIII. 3,4). They know all that passes in the external world (LV. 2) and the totality of creatures, but they don't know human secret thoughts that depends on human free will and thereby are not necessarily linked up with external events (LVII. 4). They don't know also the future unless God reveals it to them (LVII. 3).[53]

The New Church (Swedenborgianism)[edit]

The New Church denominations that arose from the writings of theologian Emanuel Swedenborg have distinct ideas about angels and the spiritual world in which they dwell. Adherents believe that all angels are in human form with a spiritual body, and are not just minds without form.[54] There are different orders of angels according to the three heavens,[55] and each angel dwells in one of innumerable societies of angels. Such a society of angels can appear as one angel as a whole.[56]

All angels originate from the human race, and there is not one angel in heaven who first did not live in a material body.[57] Moreover, all children who die not only enter heaven but eventually become angels.[58] The life of angels is that of usefulness, and their functions are so many that they cannot be enumerated. However each angel will enter a service according to the use that they had performed in their earthly life.[59] Names of angels, such as Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, signify a particular angelic function rather than an individual being.[60]

While living in one's body an individual has conjunction with heaven through the angels,[61] and with each person, there are at least two evil spirits and two angels.[62] Temptation or pains of conscience originates from a conflict between evil spirits and angels.[63] Due to man's sinful nature it is dangerous to have open direct communication with angels[64] and they can only be seen when one's spiritual sight has been opened.[65] Thus from moment to moment angels attempt to lead each person to what is good tacitly using the person's own thoughts.[66]

Latter Day Saints[edit]

Temple statue of the Angel Moroni, Bern, Switzerland

The Latter Day Saint movement views angels as the messengers of God. They are sent to mankind to deliver messages, minister to humanity, teach doctrines of salvation, call mankind to repentance, give priesthood keys, save individuals in perilous times, and guide humankind.[67]

Latter Day Saints believe that angels either are the spirits of humans who are deceased or who have yet to be born, or are humans who have been resurrected or translated and have physical bodies of flesh and bones.[68] Joseph Smith taught that "there are no angels who minister to this earth but those that do belong or have belonged to it."[69] As such, Latter Day Saints also believe that Adam, the first man, was and is now the archangel Michael,[70][71][72] and that Gabriel lived on the earth as Noah.[68] Likewise the Angel Moroni first lived in a pre-Columbian American civilization as the 5th-century prophet-warrior named Moroni.

Smith described his first angelic encounter in the following manner:

While I was thus in the act of calling upon God, I discovered a light appearing in my room, which continued to increase until the room was lighter than at noonday, when immediately a personage appeared at my bedside, standing in the air, for his feet did not touch the floor.

He had on a loose robe of most exquisite whiteness. It was a whiteness beyond anything earthly I had ever seen; nor do I believe that any earthly thing could be made to appear so exceedingly white and brilliant ...

Not only was his robe exceedingly white, but his whole person was glorious beyond description, and his countenance truly like lightning. The room was exceedingly light, but not so very bright as immediately around his person. When I first looked upon him, I was afraid; but the fear soon left me.[73]

Most angelic visitations in the early Latter Day Saint movement were witnessed by Smith and Oliver Cowdery, who both said (prior to the establishment of the church in 1830) they had been visited by the prophet Moroni, John the Baptist, and the apostles Peter, James, and John. Later, after the dedication of the Kirtland Temple, Smith and Cowdery said they had been visited by Jesus, and subsequently by Moses, Elias, and Elijah.[74]

Others who said they received a visit by an angel include the other two of the Three Witnesses: David Whitmer and Martin Harris. Many other Latter Day Saints, both in the early and modern church, have said they had seen angels, although Smith posited that, except in extenuating circumstances such as the restoration, mortals teach mortals, spirits teach spirits, and resurrected beings teach other resurrected beings.[75]

Islam[edit]

Depiction of an angel in a Persian miniature (Iran, 1555)

Main article: Angels in Islam

Belief in angels is fundamental to Islam. The Quranic word for angel (Arabic: ملاك Malāk) derives either from Malaka, meaning "he controlled", due to their power to govern different affairs assigned to them,[76] or from the root either from ʼ-l-k, l-ʼ-k or m-l-k with the broad meaning of a "messenger", just like its counterparts in Hebrew (malʾákh) and Greek (angelos). Unlike their Hebrew counterpart, the term is exclusively used for heavenly spirits of the divine world, but not for human messengers. The Quran refers to both angelic and human messengers as "rasul" instead.[77] Contrary to popular belief, angels are never described as agents of revelation in the Quran, although interpretation credits Gabriel with that.[78]

The Quran is the principal source for the Islamic concept of angels.[79] Some of them, such as Gabriel and Michael, are mentioned by name in the Quran, others are only referred to by their function. In hadith literature, angels are often assigned to only one specific phenomenon.[80] Angels play a significant role in Mi'raj literature, where Muhammad encounters several angels during his journey through the heavens.[81] Further angels have often been featured in Islamic eschatology, Islamic theology and Islamic philosophy.[82] Duties assigned to angels include, for example, communicating revelations from God, glorifying God, recording every person's actions, and taking a person's soul at the time of death.

In Islam, just like in Judaism and Christianity, angels are often represented in anthropomorphic forms combined with supernatural images, such as wings, being of great size or wearing heavenly articles.[83] The Quran describes them as "messengers with wings—two, or three, or four: He [God] adds to Creation as He pleases..."[84] Common characteristics for angels are their missing needs for bodily desires, such as eating and drinking.[85] Their lack of affinity to material desires is also expressed by their creation from light: Angels of mercy are created from nur (cold light) in opposition to the angels of punishment created from nar (hot light).[86] Muslims do not generally share the perceptions of angelic pictorial depictions, such as those found in Western art.

Although believing in angels remain one of Six Articles of Faith in Islam, one can not find a dogmatic angelology in Islamic tradition. Despite this, scholars had discussed the role of angels from specific canonical events, such as the Mi'raj, and Quranic verses. Even if they are not in focus, they have been featured in folklore, philosophy debates and systematic theology. While in classical Islam, widespread notions were accepted as canonical, there is a tendency in contemporary scholarship to reject much material about angels, like calling the Angel of Death by the name Azra'il.[87]

In Folk Islam, individual angels may be evoked in exorcism rites, whose names are engraved in talismans or amulets.[88]

Some modern scholars have emphasized a metaphorical reinterpretation of the concept of angels.[89]

Baháʼí faith[edit]

In his Kitáb-i-Íqán Baháʼu'lláh, founder of the Baháʼí Faith, describes angels as people who "have consumed, with the fire of the love of God, all human traits and limitations", and have "clothed themselves" with angelic attributes and have become "endowed with the attributes of the spiritual". ʻAbdu'l-Bahá describes angels as the "confirmations of God and His celestial powers" and as "blessed beings who have severed all ties with this nether world" and "been released from the chains of self", and "revealers of God's abounding grace". The Baháʼí writings also refer to the Concourse on High, an angelic host, and the Maid of Heaven of Baháʼu'lláh's vision.[90]

I raised my hand another time, and bared one of Her breasts that had been hidden beneath Her gown. Then the firmament was illumined by the radiance of its light, contingent beings were made resplendent by its appearance and effulgence, and by its rays, infinite numbers of suns dawned forth, as though they trekked through heavens that were without beginning or end. I became bewildered at the pen of God's handiwork, and at what it had inscribed upon Her temple. It was as though She had appeared with a body of light in the forms of the spirit, as though She moved upon the earth of essence in the substance of manifestation. I noticed that the houris had poked their heads out of their rooms and were suspended in the air above Her. They grew perplexed at Her appearance and Her beauty and were entranced by the raptures of Her song. Praise be to Her creator, fashioner, and maker--to the one Who made Her manifest.

Then she nearly swooned within herself, and with all her being she sought to inhale My fragrance. She opened Her lips, and the rays of light dawned forth from Her teeth, as though the pearls of the cause had appeared from Her treasures and Her shells.

She asked, "Who art Thou?"

I said, "A servant of God and the son of his maidservant."[91]

— Tablet of the Maiden, Baháʼu'lláh

Neoplatonism[edit]

Philo of Alexandria already identified the Neo-Platonic interpretation of daemons as angels. The daemons were thought to be intermediary between the supernatural and earthly realm, interpreted by Philo as the Greek term for angels.[36]

In the commentaries of Proclus (4th century) on the Timaeus of Plato, Proclus uses the terminology of "angelic" (aggelikos) and "angel" (aggelos) in relation to metaphysical beings. According to Aristotle, just as there is a Prime Mover,[92] so, too, must there be spiritual secondary movers.[93]

Ibn Sina, who drew upon the Neo-Platonistic emanation cosmology of Al-Farabi, developed an angelological hierarchy of Intellects, which are created by "the One". Therefore, the first creation by God was the supreme archangel followed by other archangels, who are identified with lower Intellects. From these Intellects again, emanated lower angels or "moving spheres", from which in turn, emanated other Intellects until it reaches the Intellect, which reigns over the souls. The tenth Intellect is responsible for bringing material forms into being and illuminating the minds.[94][95]

Wheel of the 72 angels of God that exist throughout the course of a year. Here, the squares are meaningless and were only added for aesthetic value.

Theosophy[edit]

In the teachings of the Theosophical Society, Devas are regarded as living either in the atmospheres of the planets of the Solar System (Planetary Angels) or inside the Sun (Solar Angels) and they help to guide the operation of the processes of nature such as the process of evolution and the growth of plants; their appearance is reputedly like colored flames about the size of a human. It is believed by Theosophists that devas can be observed when the third eye is activated. Some (but not most) devas originally incarnated as human beings.[102]

It is believed by Theosophists that nature spirits, elementals (gnomes, undines, sylphs, and salamanders), and fairies also can be observed when the third eye is activated.[103] It is maintained by Theosophists that these less evolutionarily developed beings have never been previously incarnated as humans; they are regarded as being on a separate line of spiritual evolution called the "deva evolution"; eventually, as their souls advance as they reincarnate, it is believed they will incarnate as devas.[104]

It is asserted by Theosophists that all of the above-mentioned beings possess etheric bodies that are composed of etheric matter, a type of matter finer and more pure that is composed of smaller particles than ordinary physical plane matter.[104]

Other[edit]

See also: Magic in the Greco-Roman world and Gnosticism

The Greek magical papyri, a set of texts forming into a completed grimoire that date somewhere between 100 BC and 400 AD, also list the names of the angels found in monotheistic religions, but they are presented as deities.[105]

Numerous references to angels present themselves in the Nag Hammadi Library, in which they both appear as malevolent servants of the Demiurge and innocent associates of the aeons.[106]

Brahma Kumaris[edit]

The Brahma Kumaris uses the term "angel" to refer to a perfect, or complete state of the human being, which they believe can be attained through a connection with God.[107][108] It is expanded as a state of being rather that an entity.[107]

Yazidism[edit]

Main articles: List of Yazidi holy figures and Yazidism § Holy figures

In Yazidism, there are seven Divine Beings (often called 'angels' in the literature) who were created by God prior to the creation of this world. God appointed Tawûsî Melek as their leader and assigned all of the world's affairs to these seven Divine Beings.[109] These Divine Beings are referred to as Tawûsî Melek, Melek Şemsedîn, Melek Nasirdîn, Melek Fexredîn, Melek Sicadîn, Melek Şêxsin and Melek Şêxûbekir.

They manifest a nature's sublimity. That is why Gabriel is represented with wings. Not that angels have wings, but that you may know that they leave the heights and the most elevated dwelling to approach human nature. Accordingly, the wings attributed to these powers have no other meaning than to indicate the sublimity of their nature.[115]

Angels are typically depicted in Mormon art as having no wings based on a quote from Joseph Smith ("An angel of God never has wings").[116]

In terms of their clothing, angels, especially the Archangel Michael, were depicted as military-style agents of God and came to be shown wearing Late Antique military uniform. This uniform could be the normal military dress, with a tunic to about the knees, an armour breastplate and pteruges, but was often the specific dress of the bodyguard of the Byzantine Emperor, with a long tunic and the loros, the long gold and jewelled pallium restricted to the Imperial family and their closest guards.

The basic military dress was shown in Western art into the Baroque period and beyond (see Reni picture above), and up to the present day in Eastern Orthodox icons. Other angels came to be conventionally depicted in long robes, and in the later Middle Ages they often wear the vestments of a deacon, a cope over a dalmatic. This costume was used especially for Gabriel in Annunciation scenes—for example the Annunciation in Washington by Jan van Eyck.

Some types of angels are described as possessing more unusual or frightening attributes, such as the fiery bodies of the Seraphim, and the wheel-like structures of the Ophanim.

Human

Humans (Homo sapiens) are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. Humans are highly social and tend to live in complex social structures composed of many cooperating and competing groups, from families and kinship networks to political states. As such, social interactions between humans have established a wide variety of values, social norms, language, and rituals, each of which bolster human society. The desire to understand and influence phenomena have motivated humanity's development of science, technology, philosophy, mythology, religion, and other fields of study.

Although some scientists equate the term humans with all members of the genus Homo, in common usage, it generally refers to Homo sapiens, the only extant member. Anatomically modern humans emerged around 300,000 years ago in Africa, evolving from Homo heidelbergensis or a similar species and migrating out of Africa, gradually replacing or interbreeding with local populations of archaic humans. For most of history, humans were nomadic hunter-gatherers. Humans began exhibiting behavioral modernity about 160,000–60,000 years ago. The Neolithic Revolution, which began in Southwest Asia around 13,000 years ago (and separately in a few other places), saw the emergence of agriculture and permanent human settlement. As populations became larger and denser, forms of governance developed within and between communities, and a number of civilizations have risen and fallen. Humans have continued to expand, with a global population of over 8 billion as of 2022.

Genes and the environment influence human biological variation in visible characteristics, physiology, disease susceptibility, mental abilities, body size, and life span. Though humans vary in many traits (such as genetic predispositions and physical features), any two humans are at least 99% genetically similar. Humans are sexually dimorphic: generally, males have greater body strength and females have a higher body fat percentage. At puberty, humans develop secondary sex characteristics. Females are capable of pregnancy, usually between puberty, at around 12 years, and menopause, around the age of 50.

Humans are omnivorous, capable of consuming a wide variety of plant and animal material, and have used fire and other forms of heat to prepare and cook food since the time of H. erectus. Humans can survive for up to eight weeks without food and three or four days without water. Humans are generally diurnal, sleeping on average seven to nine hours per day. Childbirth is dangerous, with a high risk of complications and death. Often, both the mother and the father provide care for their children, who are helpless at birth, as humans are an altricial species.

Humans have a large and highly developed prefrontal cortex, the region of the brain associated with higher cognition. They are highly intelligent, capable of episodic memory, have flexible facial expressions, self-awareness, and a theory of mind. The human mind is capable of introspection, private thought, imagination, volition, and forming views on existence. This has allowed great technological advancements and complex tool development possible through complex reasoning and the transmission of knowledge to subsequent generations. Language, art, and trade are defining characteristics of humans. Long-distance trade routes might have led to cultural explosions and resource distribution that gave humans an advantage over other similar species.

Etymology and definition

Further information: Names for the human species and Human taxonomy

All modern humans are classified into the species Homo sapiens, coined by Carl Linnaeus in his 1735 work Systema Naturae.[2] The generic name "Homo" is a learned 18th-century derivation from Latin homō, which refers to humans of either sex.[3][4] The word human can refer to all members of the Homo genus,[5] although in common usage it generally just refers to Homo sapiens, the only extant species.[6] The name "Homo sapiens" means 'wise man' or 'knowledgeable man'.[7] There is disagreement if certain extinct members of the genus, namely Neanderthals, should be included as a separate species of humans or as a subspecies of H. sapiens.[5]

Human is a loanword of Middle English from Old French humain, ultimately from Latin hūmānus, the adjectival form of homō ('man' — in the sense of humankind).[8] The native English term man can refer to the species generally (a synonym for humanity) as well as to human males. It may also refer to individuals of either sex, though this form is less common in contemporary English.[9]

Despite the fact that the word animal is colloquially used as an antonym for human,[10] and contrary to a common biological misconception, humans are animals.[11] The word person is often used interchangeably with human, but philosophical debate exists as to whether personhood applies to all humans or all sentient beings, and further if one can lose personhood (such as by going into a persistent vegetative state).[12]

Evolution

Main article: Human evolution

Humans are apes (superfamily Hominoidea).[13] The lineage of apes that eventually gave rise to humans first split from gibbons (family Hylobatidae) and orangutans (genus Pongo), then gorillas (genus Gorilla), and finally, chimpanzees and bonobos (genus Pan). The last split, between the human and chimpanzee–bonobo lineages, took place around 8–4 million years ago, in the late Miocene epoch.[14][15][16] During this split, chromosome 2 was formed from the joining of two other chromosomes, leaving humans with only 23 pairs of chromosomes, compared to 24 for the other apes.[17] Following their split with chimpanzees and bonobos, the hominins diversified into many species and at least two distinct genera. All but one of these lineages—representing the genus Homo and its sole extant species Homo sapiens—are now extinct.[18]

he genus Homo evolved from Australopithecus.[19][20] Though fossils from the transition are scarce, the earliest members of Homo share several key traits with Australopithecus.[21][22] The earliest record of Homo is the 2.8 million-year-old specimen LD 350-1 from Ethiopia, and the earliest named species are Homo habilis and Homo rudolfensis which evolved by 2.3 million years ago.[22] H. erectus (the African variant is sometimes called H. ergaster) evolved 2 million years ago and was the first archaic human species to leave Africa and disperse across Eurasia.[23] H. erectus also was the first to evolve a characteristically human body plan. Homo sapiens emerged in Africa around 300,000 years ago from a species commonly designated as either H. heidelbergensis or H. rhodesiensis, the descendants of H. erectus that remained in Africa.[24] H. sapiens migrated out of the continent, gradually replacing or interbreeding with local populations of archaic humans.[25][26][27] Humans began exhibiting behavioral modernity about 160,000-70,000 years ago,[28] and possibly earlier.[29]

The "out of Africa" migration took place in at least two waves, the first around 130,000 to 100,000 years ago, the second (Southern Dispersal) around 70,000 to 50,000 years ago.[30][31] H. sapiens proceeded to colonize all the continents and larger islands, arriving in Eurasia 125,000 years ago,[32][33] Australia around 65,000 years ago,[34] the Americas around 15,000 years ago, and remote islands such as Hawaii, Easter Island, Madagascar, and New Zealand between the years 300 and 1280 CE.[35][36]

Human evolution was not a simple linear or branched progression but involved interbreeding between related species.[37][38][39] Genomic research has shown that hybridization between substantially diverged lineages was common in human evolution.[40] DNA evidence suggests that several genes of Neanderthal origin are present among all non sub-Saharan African populations, and Neanderthals and other hominins, such as Denisovans, may have contributed up to 6% of their genome to present-day non sub-Saharan African humans.[37][41][42]

Human evolution is characterized by a number of morphological, developmental, physiological, and behavioral changes that have taken place since the split between the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees. The most significant of these adaptations are obligate bipedalism, increased brain size and decreased sexual dimorphism (neoteny). The relationship between all these changes is the subject of ongoing debate.[43]

History

Main article: Human history

Overview map of the peopling of the world by early human migration during the Upper Paleolithic, following to the Southern Dispersal paradigm

Until about 12,000 years ago, all humans lived as hunter-gatherers.[44][45] The Neolithic Revolution (the invention of agriculture) first took place in Southwest Asia and spread through large parts of the Old World over the following millennia.[46] It also occurred independently in Mesoamerica (about 6,000 years ago),[47] China,[48][49] Papua New Guinea,[50] and the Sahel and West Savanna regions of Africa.[51][52][53] Access to food surplus led to the formation of permanent human settlements, the domestication of animals and the use of metal tools for the first time in history. Agriculture and sedentary lifestyle led to the emergence of early civilizations.[54][55][56]

An urban revolution took place in the 4th millennium BCE with the development of city-states, particularly Sumerian cities located in Mesopotamia.[57] It was in these cities that the earliest known form of writing, cuneiform script, appeared around 3000 BCE.[58] Other major civilizations to develop around this time were Ancient Egypt and the Indus Valley Civilization.[59] They eventually traded with each other and invented technology such as wheels, plows and sails.[60][61][62][63] Astronomy and mathematics were also developed and the Great Pyramid of Giza was built.[64][65][66] There is evidence of a severe drought lasting about a hundred years that may have caused the decline of these civilizations,[67] with new ones appearing in the aftermath. Babylonians came to dominate Mesopotamia while others,[68] such as Poverty Point cultures, Minoans and the Shang dynasty, rose to prominence in new areas.[69][70][71] The Bronze Age suddenly collapsed around 1200 BCE, resulting in the disappearance of a number of civilizations and the beginning of the Greek Dark Ages.[72][73] During this period iron started replacing bronze, leading to the Iron Age.[74]

In the 5th century BCE, history started being recorded as a discipline, which provided a much clearer picture of life at the time.[75] Between the 8th and 6th century BCE, Europe entered the classical antiquity age, a period when ancient Greece and ancient Rome flourished.[76][77] Around this time other civilizations also came to prominence. The Maya civilization started to build cities and create complex calendars.[78][79] In Africa, the Kingdom of Aksum overtook the declining Kingdom of Kush and facilitated trade between India and the Mediterranean.[80] In West Asia, the Achaemenid Empire's system of centralized governance became the precursor to many later empires,[81] while the Gupta Empire in India and the Han dynasty in China have been described as golden ages in their respective regions.[82][83]

Routes taken by barbarian invaders of the Roman Empire during the Migration Period

Following the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, Europe entered the Middle Ages.[84] During this period, Christianity and the Church would provide centralized authority and education.[85] In the Middle East, Islam became the prominent religion and expanded into North Africa. It led to an Islamic Golden Age, inspiring achievements in architecture, the revival of old advances in science and technology, and the formation of a distinct way of life.[86][87] The Christian and Islamic worlds would eventually clash, with the Kingdom of England, the Kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire declaring a series of holy wars to regain control of the Holy Land from Muslims.[88] In the Americas, complex Mississippian societies would arise starting around 800 CE,[89] while further south, the Aztecs and Incas would become the dominant powers.[90] The Mongol Empire would conquer much of Eurasia in the 13th and 14th centuries.[91] Over this same time period, the Mali Empire in Africa grew to be the largest empire on the continent, stretching from Senegambia to Ivory Coast.[92] Oceania would see the rise of the Tuʻi Tonga Empire which expanded across many islands in the South Pacific.[93]

The early modern period in Europe and the Near East (c.1450–1800) began with the final defeat of the Byzantine Empire, and the rise of the Ottoman Empire.[94] Meanwhile, Japan entered the Edo period,[95] the Qing dynasty rose in China[96] and the Mughal Empire ruled much of India.[97] Europe underwent the Renaissance, starting in the 15th century,[98] and the Age of Discovery began with the exploring and colonizing of new regions.[99] This includes the British Empire expanding to become the world's largest empire[100] and the colonization of the Americas.[101] This expansion led to the Atlantic slave trade[102] and the genocide of Native American peoples.[103] This period also marked the Scientific Revolution, with great advances in mathematics, mechanics, astronomy and physiology.[104]

The late modern period (1800–present) saw the Technological and Industrial Revolution bring such discoveries as imaging technology, major innovations in transport and energy development.[105] The United States of America underwent great change, going from a small group of colonies to one of the global superpowers.[106] The Napoleonic Wars raged through Europe in the early 1800s,[107] Spain lost most of its colonies in the New World,[108] while Europeans continued expansion into Africa—where European control went from 10% to almost 90% in less than 50 years[109]—and Oceania.[110] A tenuous balance of power among European nations collapsed in 1914 with the outbreak of the First World War, one of the deadliest conflicts in history.[111] In the 1930s, a worldwide economic crisis led to the rise of authoritarian regimes and a Second World War, involving almost all of the world's countries.[112] Following its conclusion in 1945, the Cold War between the USSR and the United States saw a struggle for global influence, including a nuclear arms race and a space race.[113][114] The current Information Age sees the world becoming increasingly globalized and interconnected.[115]

Tokyo, Delhi, Shanghai, São Paulo, Mexico City, Cairo, Mumbai, Beijing, Dhaka, Osaka, New York-Newark, Karachi, Buenos Aires, Chongqing, Istanbul, Kolkata, Manila, Lagos, Rio de Janeiro, Tianjin, Kinshasa, Guangzhou, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Moscow, Shenzhen, Lahore, Bangalore, Paris, Jakarta, Chennai, Lima, Bogota, Bangkok, London

Early human settlements were dependent on proximity to water and—depending on the lifestyle—other natural resources used for subsistence, such as populations of animal prey for hunting and arable land for growing crops and grazing livestock.[119] Modern humans, however, have a great capacity for altering their habitats by means of technology, irrigation, urban planning, construction, deforestation and desertification.[120] Human settlements continue to be vulnerable to natural disasters, especially those placed in hazardous locations and with low quality of construction.[121] Grouping and deliberate habitat alteration is often done with the goals of providing protection, accumulating comforts or material wealth, expanding the available food, improving aesthetics, increasing knowledge or enhancing the exchange of resources.[122]

Humans are one of the most adaptable species, despite having a low or narrow tolerance for many of the earth's extreme environments.[123] Through advanced tools, humans have been able to extend their tolerance to a wide variety of temperatures, humidity, and altitudes.[123] As a result, humans are a cosmopolitan species found in almost all regions of the world, including tropical rainforest, arid desert, extremely cold arctic regions, and heavily polluted cities; in comparison, most other species are confined to a few geographical areas by their limited adaptability.[124] The human population is not, however, uniformly distributed on the Earth's surface, because the population density varies from one region to another, and large stretches of surface are almost completely uninhabited, like Antarctica and vast swathes of the ocean.[123][125] Most humans (61%) live in Asia; the remainder live in the Americas (14%), Africa (14%), Europe (11%), and Oceania (0.5%).[126]

Within the last century, humans have explored challenging environments such as Antarctica, the deep sea, and outer space.[127] Human habitation within these hostile environments is restrictive and expensive, typically limited in duration, and restricted to scientific, military, or industrial expeditions.[127] Humans have briefly visited the Moon and made their presence felt on other celestial bodies through human-made robotic spacecraft.[128][129][130] Since the early 20th century, there has been continuous human presence in Antarctica through research stations and, since 2000, in space through habitation on the International Space Station.[131]

Humans and their domesticated animals represent 96% of all mammalian biomass on earth, whereas all wild mammals represent only 4%.[132]

Life cycle

A 10 mm human embryo at 5 weeks

Most human reproduction takes place by internal fertilization via sexual intercourse, but can also occur through assisted reproductive technology procedures.[185] The average gestation period is 38 weeks, but a normal pregnancy can vary by up to 37 days.[186] Embryonic development in the human covers the first eight weeks of development; at the beginning of the ninth week the embryo is termed a fetus.[187] Humans are able to induce early labor or perform a caesarean section if the child needs to be born earlier for medical reasons.[188] In developed countries, infants are typically 3–4 kg (7–9 lb) in weight and 47–53 cm (19–21 in) in height at birth.[189][190] However, low birth weight is common in developing countries, and contributes to the high levels of infant mortality in these regions.[191]

Compared with other species, human childbirth is dangerous, with a much higher risk of complications and death.[192] The size of the fetus's head is more closely matched to the pelvis than other primates.[193] The reason for this is not completely understood,[n 3] but it contributes to a painful labor that can last 24 hours or more.[195] The chances of a successful labor increased significantly during the 20th century in wealthier countries with the advent of new medical technologies. In contrast, pregnancy and natural childbirth remain hazardous ordeals in developing regions of the world, with maternal death rates approximately 100 times greater than in developed countries.[196]

Both the mother and the father provide care for human offspring, in contrast to other primates, where parental care is mostly done by the mother.[197] Helpless at birth, humans continue to grow for some years, typically reaching sexual maturity at 15 to 17 years of age.[198][199][200] The human life span has been split into various stages ranging from three to twelve. Common stages include infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood and old age.[201] The lengths of these stages have varied across cultures and time periods but is typified by an unusually rapid growth spurt during adolescence.[202] Human females undergo menopause and become infertile at around the age of 50.[203] It has been proposed that menopause increases a woman's overall reproductive success by allowing her to invest more time and resources in her existing offspring, and in turn their children (the grandmother hypothesis), rather than by continuing to bear children into old age.[204][205]

The life span of an individual depends on two major factors, genetics and lifestyle choices.[206] For various reasons, including biological/genetic causes, women live on average about four years longer than men.[207] As of 2018, the global average life expectancy at birth of a girl is estimated to be 74.9 years compared to 70.4 for a boy.[208][209] There are significant geographical variations in human life expectancy, mostly correlated with economic development—for example, life expectancy at birth in Hong Kong is 87.6 years for girls and 81.8 for boys, while in the Central African Republic, it is 55.0 years for girls and 50.6 for boys.[210][211] The developed world is generally aging, with the median age around 40 years. In the developing world, the median age is between 15 and 20 years. While one in five Europeans is 60 years of age or older, only one in twenty Africans is 60 years of age or older.[212] In 2012, the United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centenarians (humans of age 100 or older) worldwide.[213]

Humans living in Bali, Indonesia, preparing a meal

Humans are omnivorous, capable of consuming a wide variety of plant and animal material.[214][215] Human groups have adopted a range of diets from purely vegan to primarily carnivorous. In some cases, dietary restrictions in humans can lead to deficiency diseases; however, stable human groups have adapted to many dietary patterns through both genetic specialization and cultural conventions to use nutritionally balanced food sources.[216] The human diet is prominently reflected in human culture and has led to the development of food science.[217]

Until the development of agriculture approximately 10,000 years ago, Homo sapiens employed a hunter-gatherer method as their sole means of food collection.[217] This involved combining stationary food sources (such as fruits, grains, tubers, and mushrooms, insect larvae and aquatic mollusks) with wild game, which must be hunted and captured in order to be consumed.[218] It has been proposed that humans have used fire to prepare and cook food since the time of Homo erectus.[219] Around ten thousand years ago, humans developed agriculture,[220][221][222] which substantially altered their diet. This change in diet may also have altered human biology; with the spread of dairy farming providing a new and rich source of food, leading to the evolution of the ability to digest lactose in some adults.[223][224] The types of food consumed, and how they are prepared, have varied widely by time, location, and culture.[225][226]

In general, humans can survive for up to eight weeks without food, depending on stored body fat.[227] Survival without water is usually limited to three or four days, with a maximum of one week.[228] In 2020 it is estimated 9 million humans die every year from causes directly or indirectly related to starvation.[229][230] Childhood malnutrition is also common and contributes to the global burden of disease.[231] However, global food distribution is not even, and obesity among some human populations has increased rapidly, leading to health complications and increased mortality in some developed and a few developing countries. Worldwide, over one billion people are obese,[232] while in the United States 35% of people are obese, leading to this being described as an "obesity epidemic."[233] Obesity is caused by consuming more calories than are expended, so excessive weight gain is usually caused by an energy-dense diet.[232]

Biological variation

Main article: Human genetic variation

Changes in the number and order of genes (A-D) create genetic diversity within and between population.

There is biological variation in the human species—with traits such as blood type, genetic diseases, cranial features, facial features, organ systems, eye color, hair color and texture, height and build, and skin color varying across the globe. The typical height of an adult human is between 1.4 and 1.9 m (4 ft 7 in and 6 ft 3 in), although this varies significantly depending on sex, ethnic origin, and family bloodlines.[234][235] Body size is partly determined by genes and is also significantly influenced by environmental factors such as diet, exercise, and sleep patterns.[236]

Human hair ranges in color from red to blond to brown to black, which is the most frequent.[243] Hair color depends on the amount of melanin, with concentrations fading with increased age, leading to grey or even white hair. Skin color can range from darkest brown to lightest peach, or even nearly white or colorless in cases of albinism.[244] It tends to vary clinally and generally correlates with the level of ultraviolet radiation in a particular geographic area, with darker skin mostly around the equator.[245] Skin darkening may have evolved as protection against ultraviolet solar radiation.[246] Light skin pigmentation protects against depletion of vitamin D, which requires sunlight to make.[247] Human skin also has a capacity to darken (tan) in response to exposure to ultraviolet radiation.[248][249]

A Libyan, a Nubian, a Syrian, and an Egyptian, drawing by an unknown artist after a mural of the tomb of Seti I

There is relatively little variation between human geographical populations, and most of the variation that occurs is at the individual level.[244][250][251] Much of human variation is continuous, often with no clear points of demarcation.[252][253][254][255] Genetic data shows that no matter how population groups are defined, two people from the same population group are almost as different from each other as two people from any two different population groups.[256][257][258] Dark-skinned populations that are found in Africa, Australia, and South Asia are not closely related to each other.[259][260]

Psychology

Main article: Psychology

Drawing of the human brain, showing several important structures

The human brain, the focal point of the central nervous system in humans, controls the peripheral nervous system. In addition to controlling "lower," involuntary, or primarily autonomic activities such as respiration and digestion, it is also the locus of "higher" order functioning such as thought, reasoning, and abstraction.[278] These cognitive processes constitute the mind, and, along with their behavioral consequences, are studied in the field of psychology.

Humans have a larger and more developed prefrontal cortex than other primates, the region of the brain associated with higher cognition.[279] This has led humans to proclaim themselves to be more intelligent than any other known species.[280] Objectively defining intelligence is difficult, with other animals adapting senses and excelling in areas that humans are unable to.[281]

There are some traits that, although not strictly unique, do set humans apart from other animals.[282] Humans may be the only animals who have episodic memory and who can engage in "mental time travel".[283] Even compared with other social animals, humans have an unusually high degree of flexibility in their facial expressions.[284] Humans are the only animals known to cry emotional tears.[285] Humans are one of the few animals able to self-recognize in mirror tests[286] and there is also debate over to what extent humans are the only animals with a theory of mind.[287]

Sleep and dreaming

Main articles: Sleep and Dream

Humans are generally diurnal. The average sleep requirement is between seven and nine hours per day for an adult and nine to ten hours per day for a child; elderly people usually sleep for six to seven hours. Having less sleep than this is common among humans, even though sleep deprivation can have negative health effects. A sustained restriction of adult sleep to four hours per day has been shown to correlate with changes in physiology and mental state, including reduced memory, fatigue, aggression, and bodily discomfort.[288]

During sleep humans dream, where they experience sensory images and sounds. Dreaming is stimulated by the pons and mostly occurs during the REM phase of sleep.[289] The length of a dream can vary, from a few seconds up to 30 minutes.[290] Humans have three to five dreams per night, and some may have up to seven;[291] however most dreams are immediately or quickly forgotten.[292] They are more likely to remember the dream if awakened during the REM phase. The events in dreams are generally outside the control of the dreamer, with the exception of lucid dreaming, where the dreamer is self-aware.[293] Dreams can at times make a creative thought occur or give a sense of inspiration.[294]

Consciousness and thought

Main articles: Consciousness and Cognition

Human consciousness, at its simplest, is sentience or awareness of internal or external existence.[295] Despite centuries of analyses, definitions, explanations and debates by philosophers and scientists, consciousness remains puzzling and controversial,[296] being "at once the most familiar and most mysterious aspect of our lives".[297] The only widely agreed notion about the topic is the intuition that it exists.[298] Opinions differ about what exactly needs to be studied and explained as consciousness. Some philosophers divide consciousness into phenomenal consciousness, which is sensory experience itself, and access consciousness, which can be used for reasoning or directly controlling actions.[299] It is sometimes synonymous with 'the mind', and at other times, an aspect of it. Historically it is associated with introspection, private thought, imagination and volition.[300] It now often includes some kind of experience, cognition, feeling or perception. It may be 'awareness', or 'awareness of awareness', or self-awareness.[301] There might be different levels or orders of consciousness,[302] or different kinds of consciousness, or just one kind with different features.[303]

The process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses is known as cognition.[304] The human brain perceives the external world through the senses, and each individual human is influenced greatly by his or her experiences, leading to subjective views of existence and the passage of time.[305] The nature of thought is central to psychology and related fields. Cognitive psychology studies cognition, the mental processes underlying behavior.[306] Largely focusing on the development of the human mind through the life span, developmental psychology seeks to understand how people come to perceive, understand, and act within the world and how these processes change as they age.[307][308] This may focus on intellectual, cognitive, neural, social, or moral development. Psychologists have developed intelligence tests and the concept of intelligence quotient in order to assess the relative intelligence of human beings and study its distribution among population.[309]

Motivation and emotion

Main articles: Motivation and Emotion

Illustration of grief from Charles Darwin's 1872 book The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals

Human motivation is not yet wholly understood. From a psychological perspective, Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a well-established theory that can be defined as the process of satisfying certain needs in ascending order of complexity.[310] From a more general, philosophical perspective, human motivation can be defined as a commitment to, or withdrawal from, various goals requiring the application of human ability. Furthermore, incentive and preference are both factors, as are any perceived links between incentives and preferences. Volition may also be involved, in which case willpower is also a factor. Ideally, both motivation and volition ensure the selection, striving for, and realization of goals in an optimal manner, a function beginning in childhood and continuing throughout a lifetime in a process known as socialization.[311]

Emotions are biological states associated with the nervous system[312][313] brought on by neurophysiological changes variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure.[314][315] They are often intertwined with mood, temperament, personality, disposition, creativity,[316] and motivation. Emotion has a significant influence on human behavior and their ability to learn.[317] Acting on extreme or uncontrolled emotions can lead to social disorder and crime,[318] with studies showing criminals may have a lower emotional intelligence than normal.[319]

Emotional experiences perceived as pleasant, such as joy, interest or contentment, contrast with those perceived as unpleasant, like anxiety, sadness, anger, and despair.[320] Happiness, or the state of being happy, is a human emotional condition. The definition of happiness is a common philosophical topic. Some define it as experiencing the feeling of positive emotional affects, while avoiding the negative ones.[321][322] Others see it as an appraisal of life satisfaction or quality of life.[323] Recent research suggests that being happy might involve experiencing some negative emotions when humans feel they are warranted.[324]

Sexuality and love

Main articles: Human sexuality and Love

Parents can display familial love for their children.

For humans, sexuality involves biological, erotic, physical, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors.[325][326] Because it is a broad term, which has varied with historical contexts over time, it lacks a precise definition.[326] The biological and physical aspects of sexuality largely concern the human reproductive functions, including the human sexual response cycle.[325][326] Sexuality also affects and is affected by cultural, political, legal, philosophical, moral, ethical, and religious aspects of life.[325][326] Sexual desire, or libido, is a basic mental state present at the beginning of sexual behavior. Studies show that men desire sex more than women and masturbate more often.[327]

Humans can fall anywhere along a continuous scale of sexual orientation,[328] although most humans are heterosexual.[329][330] While homosexual behavior occurs in some other animals, only humans and domestic sheep have so far been found to exhibit exclusive preference for same-sex relationships.[329] Most evidence supports nonsocial, biological causes of sexual orientation,[329] as cultures that are very tolerant of homosexuality do not have significantly higher rates of it.[330][331] Research in neuroscience and genetics suggests that other aspects of human sexuality are biologically influenced as well.[332]

Love most commonly refers to a feeling of strong attraction or emotional attachment. It can be impersonal (the love of an object, ideal, or strong political or spiritual connection) or interpersonal (love between humans).[333] When in love dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin and other chemicals stimulate the brain's pleasure center, leading to side effects such as increased heart rate, loss of appetite and sleep, and an intense feeling of excitement.[334]

Culture

Main articles: Culture and Cultural universal

Human society statistics

Most widely spoken languages[335][336]

English, Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, Spanish, Standard Arabic, Bengali, French, Russian, Portuguese, Urdu

Most practiced religions[336][337]

Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, folk religions, Sikhism, Judaism, unaffiliated

Humanity's unprecedented set of intellectual skills were a key factor in the species' eventual technological advancement and concomitant domination of the biosphere.[338] Disregarding extinct hominids, humans are the only animals known to teach generalizable information,[339] innately deploy recursive embedding to generate and communicate complex concepts,[340] engage in the "folk physics" required for competent tool design,[341][342] or cook food in the wild.[343] Teaching and learning preserves the cultural and ethnographic identity of human societies.[344] Other traits and behaviors that are mostly unique to humans include starting fires,[345] phoneme structuring[346] and vocal learning.[347]

Language

Main article: Language

While many species communicate, language is unique to humans, a defining feature of humanity, and a cultural universal.[348] Unlike the limited systems of other animals, human language is open—an infinite number of meanings can be produced by combining a limited number of symbols.[349][350] Human language also has the capacity of displacement, using words to represent things and happenings that are not presently or locally occurring but reside in the shared imagination of interlocutors.[149]

Language differs from other forms of communication in that it is modality independent; the same meanings can be conveyed through different media, audibly in speech, visually by sign language or writing, and through tactile media such as braille.[351] Language is central to the communication between humans, and to the sense of identity that unites nations, cultures and ethnic groups.[352] There are approximately six thousand different languages currently in use, including sign languages, and many thousands more that are extinct.[353]

The arts

Main article: The arts

Human arts can take many forms including visual, literary and performing. Visual art can range from paintings and sculptures to film, interaction design and architecture.[354] Literary arts can include prose, poetry and dramas; while the performing arts generally involve theatre, music and dance. Humans often combine the different forms (for example, music videos).[357] Other entities that have been described as having artistic qualities include food preparation, video games and medicine.[358][359][360] As well as providing entertainment and transferring knowledge, the arts are also used for political purposes.[361]

The Deluge tablet of the Gilgamesh epic in Akkadian

Art is a defining characteristic of humans and there is evidence for a relationship between creativity and language.[362] The earliest evidence of art was shell engravings made by Homo erectus 300,000 years before modern humans evolved.[363] Art attributed to H. sapiens existed at least 75,000 years ago, with jewellery and drawings found in caves in South Africa.[364][365] There are various hypotheses as to why humans have adapted to the arts. These include allowing them to better problem solve issues, providing a means to control or influence other humans, encouraging cooperation and contribution within a society or increasing the chance of attracting a potential mate.[366] The use of imagination developed through art, combined with logic may have given early humans an evolutionary advantage.[362]

Evidence of humans engaging in musical activities predates cave art and so far music has been practiced by virtually all known human cultures.[367] There exists a wide variety of music genres and ethnic musics; with humans' musical abilities being related to other abilities, including complex social human behaviours.[367] It has been shown that human brains respond to music by becoming synchronized with the rhythm and beat, a process called entrainment.[368] Dance is also a form of human expression found in all cultures[369] and may have evolved as a way to help early humans communicate.[370] Listening to music and observing dance stimulates the orbitofrontal cortex and other pleasure sensing areas of the brain.[371]

Unlike speaking, reading and writing does not come naturally to humans and must be taught.[372] Still, literature has been present before the invention of words and language, with 30,000-year-old paintings on walls inside some caves portraying a series of dramatic scenes.[373] One of the oldest surviving works of literature is the Epic of Gilgamesh, first engraved on ancient Babylonian tablets about 4,000 years ago.[374] Beyond simply passing down knowledge, the use and sharing of imaginative fiction through stories might have helped develop humans' capabilities for communication and increased the likelihood of securing a mate.[375] Storytelling may also be used as a way to provide the audience with moral lessons and encourage cooperation.