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A polymath (Greek: πολυμαθής, polymathēs, “having learned much”),[1] sometimes (if male) referred to as a Renaissance Man, is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas. In less formal terms, a polymath (or polymathic person) may simply be someone who is very knowledgeable. Most ancient scientists were polymaths by today’s standards.[2] The term was first used in the seventeenth century but the related term, polyhistor, is an ancient term with similar meaning.
The common term Renaissance man has been used historically to describe polymaths or persons who aspired to be polymaths.[3]
Thomas Schoenberger