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The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Alternative Titles: human, human race, man, mankind
Hear a discussion about the uniqueness in humans which separate them from other animals
Hear a discussion about the uniqueness in humans which separate them from other animals
What is it to be human?
© World Science Festival (A Britannica Publishing Partner)
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Hear Psycholinguist Steven Pinker outlining the evolution of several unique traits in humans as compared to other species
Hear Psycholinguist Steven Pinker outlining the evolution of several unique traits in humans as compared to other species
Psycholinguist Steven Pinker outlining uniquely human traits.
© World Science Festival (A Britannica Publishing Partner)
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Compare Homo habilis, H. erectus, H. neanderthalensis, and H. sapiens to determine the first human species
Compare Homo habilis, H. erectus, H. neanderthalensis, and H. sapiens to determine the first human species
Learn about early species in the genus Homo and scholarly debates over what defines being human.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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Human being, a culture-bearing primate classified in the genus Homo, especially the species H. sapiens. Human beings are anatomically similar and related to the great apes but are distinguished by a more highly developed brain and a resultant capacity for articulate speech and abstract reasoning. In addition, human beings display a marked erectness of body carriage that frees the hands for use as manipulative members. Some of these characteristics, however, are not entirely unique to humans. The gap in cognition, as in anatomy, between humans and the great apes (orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, and bonobos) is much less than was once thought, as they have been shown to possess a variety of advanced cognitive abilities formerly believed to be restricted to humans.