noun
humanity
Academic disciplines studying human culture.
The humanities explore how people express ideas, values, and beliefs.
Etymology
Latin humanitas could mean cultivation and humane education as well as human nature. In the humanities, that educational sense names fields devoted to human culture and its expression.
More examples
- She teaches history in the humanities department.
- The college requires every student to take a humanities course.
- Research in the humanities helps us understand ancient cultures.
Forms
humanities
Similar words
- liberal arts
- Broader educational grouping that also includes mathematics and natural sciences.
- arts
- Can emphasize creative practice rather than studying human culture.