# Homo superior

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Homo_superior
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Homo_superior.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_superior
> Source revision: 1313506865
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

Not to be confused with [Superhuman](/source/Superhuman) or [Mutant (Marvel Comics)](/source/Mutant_(Marvel_Comics)).

**Homo superior** is a term used in speculative fiction and philosophy to describe a hypothetical evolutionary successor to *[Homo sapiens](/source/Homo_sapiens)*.

The expression was first popularised by the British writer [Olaf Stapledon](/source/Olaf_Stapledon) in his novel *[Odd John](/source/Odd_John)* (1935), where it referred to a mutant child prodigy whose abilities marked him as a new species beyond ordinary humanity.[1][2][3]

The idea is distinct from [Friedrich Nietzsche](/source/Friedrich_Nietzsche)’s concept of the *[Übermensch](/source/%C3%9Cbermensch)* ("superman"), which was philosophical rather than biological, though the two are often compared.[4]

The term has since appeared in popular culture, notably in the 1970s British television series *[The Tomorrow People](/source/The_Tomorrow_People)* and in [David Bowie](/source/David_Bowie)’s song "*[Oh! You Pretty Things](/source/Oh!_You_Pretty_Things)*" (1971).[5]

## See also

- [Posthuman](/source/Posthuman)
- [Transhumanism](/source/Transhumanism)
- [Übermensch](/source/%C3%9Cbermensch)

## References

1. "Homo superior." *Oxford Reference*. Oxford University Press. Accessed 26 September 2025.

1. Rabkin, Eric S. "The Composite Fiction of Olaf Stapledon." *Science Fiction Studies*, vol. 1, no. 4 (1974), pp. 308–315. JSTOR.

1. Rajasekaran, S. "Exploring Critical Posthumanism in Olaf Stapledon’s *Odd John*." *International Journal of English Research*, vol. 6, no. 2, 2024, pp. 557–561.

1. Roberts, Adam. *The History of Science Fiction*. Palgrave Macmillan, 2007, pp. 142–145.

1. Sandford, Christopher. *Bowie: Loving the Alien*. Da Capo Press, 1998, p. 105.

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Homo superior](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_superior) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_superior?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.