Rooted in the Earth: How Are Man, Dust, Humility, and Adam Related?

As I sat in my Latin class a couple weeks ago, my curiosity was sparked by some comparisons my professor was making between the words humanitas and homo (“humanity” and “man", respectively). The etymology side of my brain was activated, and I began to see some intriguing similarities.

I noted that humanitas seemed to share a similar root to humus (dirt, earth, dust) and humilitas (humility, debasement, submission). It was interesting to think that these words sound so familiar and might be possibly related in etymology, so I did some research.

What I discovered is that homo, humanitas, and humilitas are all in fact etymologically rooted in the word humus. This is due to the fact that each of these words shares a common stem in the Proto Indo-European (PIE) root dhghem-, “earth,” which may also form the basis for the Sanskrit ksam-.

So the words for “man,” “humanity,” and “humility” are all related to “earth/dirt,” or humus, in Latin.

Remembering one other ancient word with similar roots, I did one last search. This time I was focused on the name of the first man, namely Adam. Sure enough, the name Adam is from the Hebrew word adamah, which means “ground.”

The Latin root words for “human,” “humanity,” and “humility,” as well as the name of the first father of Man, are thus all founded in the theological reality of man’s creation from the dust of the earth.

I was delighted at this discovery. I get excited whenever philology combines with other subjects, but there’s something about finding a theological reality in the structure of language that is especially beautiful.

Words, the building blocks of language, are amazing and important. Language is the foundation of how people communicate. Through words, we can educate, express emotion, create art, and bring stories to life. Through a Word, God spoke the world into existence. Our little words allow us to imitate this immense Word, bringing things into existence through speech.

This connection between the words for "man" and "earth" serves as a little reminder that we are lovingly formed by God's own hands from the dust of the earth, and as such, we are called to serve Him in humility, a virtue also rooted in the word for "earth."

“Memento homo quia pulvis es, et in pulverem reverteris.” ("Remember man, that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.")

The majority of this article was first published on the author's Substack, Pulchrum Antiquum, March 30, 2025. See here. 

For more linguistic musings, feel free to peruse the articles on Pulchrum Antiquum, and please subscribe if you find enjoyment or amusement.