# Humanities

By [blueberry](https://paragraph.com/@blueberry-2) · 2022-09-22

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![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/429ae66e01c6f794bc26c5a2da0f106e7b660fc357f3935d4431e35032a18021.png)

In medieval education, the humanities ("related to the study of man" in Latin) referred to classical knowledge, philosophy, and contemporary literature. In this context, "humanistic" means "related to the study of people". So study classical knowledge, because it is believed to illuminate the vast majority of the best worldly knowledge; and study philosophy, because philosophy reveals how men think, and what they think can be noblest the result of; so contemporary literature is studied because it reveals what the "best" wisdom of that era was thinking. These studies are considered to prepare a person for entry into life, or if he has to enter a profession that helps his mind to adapt to military, diplomatic or government jobs (which do not require further study), or It is a special job that accommodates certain needs for further study, such as law or church. From its foundation in the late Middle Ages to the mid-20th century, the humanities were widely regarded as some kind of research program in most European universities.

![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/1716ddbd8f6d41d8b593500e05278e61466c9ca49b5f4c6f2aa199f9f9341dce.png)

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*Originally published on [blueberry](https://paragraph.com/@blueberry-2/humanities)*