''Homo narrans'' ('storytelling human') is one of a number of binomial

names for the human species In addition to the generally accepted Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic name ''Homo sapiens'' (Latin: "sapient human", Carl Linnaeus, Linnaeus 1758), other Latin-based names for the human species have been created to refer to various aspects of the h ...

modelled on the commonly used term ''

Homo sapiens 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. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

'' ('wise human'). The term posits the primacy of storytelling over, for example, language or reasoning, in differentiating ''Homo sapiens'' from other species of the genus ''

Homo ''Homo'' () is the genus that emerged in the (otherwise extinct) genus ''Australopithecus'' that encompasses the extant species ''Homo sapiens'' ( modern humans), plus several extinct species classified as either ancestral to or closely relate ...

''.

History

Scholarly use of the term may originate with the German ethnologist

Kurt Ranke Kurt Ranke (14 April 1908 – 6 June 1985) was a German ethnologist who specialized in the study of fairy tales. Biography Kurt Ranke was born in Blankenburg, Germany on 14 April 1908. His father was a postal inspector. Growing up in Essen, Ranke ...

in a paper published in 1967. Another prominent coining of the term, apparently independent of Ranke's, was by the communications theorist Walter R. Fisher, who is often credited with originating the term. Fisher wrote that 'many different root metaphors have been put forth to represent the essential nature of human beings: ''

homo faber ''Homo faber'' () is the concept that human beings are able to control their fate and their environment as a result of the use of tools. Original phrase In Latin literature, Appius Claudius Caecus uses this term in his ''Sententiæ'', refer ...

'', '' homo economicous'', ''

homo politicus ''Homo'' () is the genus that emerged in the (otherwise extinct) genus ''Australopithecus'' that encompasses the extant species ''Homo sapiens'' (modern humans), plus several extinct species classified as either ancestral to or closely related ...

'', ''

homo sociologicus The term ''Homo economicus'', or economic man, is the portrayal of humans as agents who are consistently rational and narrowly self-interested, and who pursue their subjectively defined ends optimally. It is a word play on ''Homo sapiens'', u ...

'', "psychological man", "ecclesiastical man", ''homo sapiens'', and, of course, "rational man". I now propose ''homo narrans'' to be added to the list.'

Appearances in popular culture

The fantasy book '' The Science of Discworld II: The Globe'' concludes with the words 'plenty of creatures are intelligent but only one tells stories. That's us: '' Pan narrans''. And what about ''Homo sapiens''? Yes, we think that would be a very good idea.'

Terry Pratchett Sir Terence David John Pratchett (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English humourist, satirist, and author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for his ''Discworld'' series of 41 novels. Pratchett's first nov ...

, Ian Stewart and Jack Cohen 2002. (The last sentence is a call back to a quote attributed to

Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

, included in a footnote earlier in the book, when asked what he thought of civilisation on a visit to London.)

References

Humans Latin philosophical phrases {{Latin-vocab-stub