Understanding Intelligence Across Humans and Machines

Etymology of the term intelligence

The term "intelligence" comes from Latin roots. It derives from the Latin nouns *intelligentia* or *intellēctus*, which stem from the verb *intelligere*, meaning to comprehend or perceive. In the Middle Ages, *intellectus* became a scholarly technical term for understanding and was used as a translation of the Greek philosophical term *nous*. In medieval scholastic thought, *nous* and *intellectus* were closely tied to metaphysical and cosmological ideas, including teleological explanations and the concept of the "active intellect" (often called "active intelligence"). Early modern philosophers later rejected this scholastic framework and preferred the English term "understanding" rather than "intellectus"/"intelligence" in their works. As a result, "intelligence" became less common in English philosophical usage, though it was later revived in more contemporary psychology, carrying some of the scholastic implications with it.

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Core definitions and controversies

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