• Humanism

    Pronunciation

    • UK IPA: /ˈhjuːmÉ™nɪz(É™)m/

    Origin

    From human + -ism.

    Full definition of humanism

    Noun

    humanism

    (usually uncountable; plural humanisms)
    1. The study of the humanities or the liberal arts; literary (especially classical) scholarship. from 19th c.
    2. (historical, often capitalized) Specifically, a cultural and intellectual movement in 14th-16th century Europe characterised by attention to Classical culture and a promotion of vernacular texts, notably during the Renaissance. from 19th c.
      • 2009, Diarmaid MacCulloch, A History of Christianity, Penguin 2010, p. 575:There were good reasons for humanism and the Renaissance to take their origins from fourteenth-century Italy.
    3. An ethical system that centers on humans and their values, needs, interests, abilities, dignity and freedom; especially used for a secular one which rejects theistic religion and superstition. from 19th c.
    4. Humanitarianism, philanthropy.

    Derived terms

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