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Herbert Spencer

Also known as Spencert, Gerbert Spencer

English philosopher and political theorist (1820–1903)

AI overview

Herbert Spencer was a 19th-century English philosopher who applied the concept of evolution to society and human development, arguing that societies progress through natural competition and struggle. His influential ideas shaped debates about politics, economics, and social change for generations, though many of his theories are now rejected by modern scholars.

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Wikidata facts

Instance of: human
Given name: Herbert
Family name: Spencer
Gender: male
Citizenship: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
Place of birth: Derby
Place of death: Brighton
Occupation: biologist
Employer: The Economist
Languages spoken: English language
Native language: English language
Religion: agnosticism
Field of work: botany
Movement: utilitarianism
Image: Herbert Spencer.jpg

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on focus list of Wikimedia project: Wikipedia:Vital articles/Level/4
date of birth: 1824-04-27
date of death: 1903-00-00
place of burial: Highgate Cemetery
Commons category: Herbert Spencer
topic's main category: Category:Herbert Spencer
Commons Creator page: Herbert Spencer
Commons gallery: Herbert Spencer
nominated for: Nobel Peace Prize
name in native language: Herbert Spencer
writing language: English language
member of: Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei
has works in the collection: Victoria and Albert Museum
ethnic group: British
contributed to creative work: Popular Science
P12749: Otto Günsche

Sources (9)

via Wikidata · CC0

Works in European collections

36 objects attributed to Herbert Spencer, held across European museums, libraries & archives · via Europeana

Die Principien der Biologie, 2

Obras filosóficas de Spencer : los primeros principios

Die Principien der Biologie, 1

The principles of biology, 1

Grundlagen der Philosophie

The principles of biology. by Herbert Spencer. 2

Ecclesiastical Institutions: being Part VI. of the Principles of Sociology : [War früher als Theil des 'System of Synthetic Philosophy', Ph.u. 8?? 469 hx, ausgetellt.] Die 'Ecclesiastical Institutions' sind auch in der Ausgabe von 1896 im 8. Bande des 'System of Synthetic Philosophy' vorhanden. Das Anerbieten des Verlegers, die Ausgabe von 1885 zurückzunehmen, wurde aus bibliogr. und bibliothekarischen Gründen nicht acceptiert

The principles of sociology. by Herbert Spencer. 2

Einleitung in das Studium der Sociologie ; 2. von Herbert Spencer ; hrsg. von Heinrich Marquardsen

Einleitung in das Studium der Sociologie ; 1. von Herbert Spencer ; hrsg. von Heinrich Marquardsen

Classification des sciences

Erziehungslehre : In dt. Übers. hrsg. v. Fritz Schultze

Essays. scientific, political and speculative. by Herbert Spencer. 2

The principles of psychology. 2

The principles of biology. by Herbert Spencer. 1

The principles of sociology. by Herbert Spencer. 1

The study of sociology

Essays. scientific, political and speculative. by Herbert Spencer. 3

Von der Freiheit zur Gebundenheit. Herbert Spencer. Vom Verf. genehmigte Übers. durch Wilhelm Bode

The principles of psychology. 1

System der synthetischen Philosophie. von Herbert Spencer. Übers. von B. Vetter. I. Band. Grundlagen der Philosophie

Introduction a la science sociale. par Herbert Spencer

Essays. scientific, political and speculative. by Herbert Spencer. 1

Education. intellectual, moral, and physical

Social Statics, abridged and revised, together with The Man versus the State

The man 'versus' the state : containing 'The new Toryism', 'The coming slavery', 'The sins of legislators' and 'The great political superstition'

The principles of psychology, 1

Einleitung in das Studium der Sociologie, 2

Essays: scientific, political & speculative, 3

Von der Freiheit zur Gebundenheit

Die Principien der Sociologie, 1

The Philosophy of Style, together with an Essay on Style by T. H. Wright, edited with Introduction and Notes by Fred. N. Scott

Einleitung in das Studium der Sociologie, 1

A system of synthetic philosophy, 6

The principles of biology, 2

~40 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Herbert Spencer (27 April 1820 – 8 December 1903) was an English polymath active as a philosopher, psychologist, biologist, sociologist, and anthropologist. Spencer originated the expression "survival of the fittest", which he coined in Principles of Biology (1864) after reading Charles Darwin's 1859 book On the Origin of Species. The term strongly suggests natural selection, yet Spencer saw evolution as extending into realms of sociology and ethics, so he also supported Lamarckism.

Spencer developed an all-embracing conception of evolution as the progressive development of the physical world, biological organisms, the human mind, and human culture and societies. As a polymath, he contributed to a wide range of subjects, including ethics, religion, anthropology, economics, political theory, philosophy, literature, astronomy, biology, sociology, and psychology. During his lifetime he achieved tremendous authority, mainly in English-speaking academia. Spencer was "the single most famous European intellectual in the closing decades of the nineteenth century" but his influence declined sharply after 1900: "Who now reads Spencer?" asked Talcott Parsons in 1937.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Herbert Spencer” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Herbert Spencer

Wikidata facts

Works in European collections

Encyclopedic overview

Gallery (8)

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What links here1,880 pages