Editing Homunculus (section)

{{short description|Representation of a small human being, common in alchemy and fiction}}
{{other uses|Homunculus (disambiguation)}}

A '''homunculus''' ({{IPAc-en|UK|h|ɒ|ˈ|m|ʌ|ŋ|k|j|ʊ|l|ə|s}} {{respell|hom|UNK|yuul|əs}}, {{IPAc-en|US|h|oʊ|ˈ|-}} {{respell|hohm|-}}, {{IPA|la|hɔˈmʊŋkʊlʊs|lang}}; "little person", {{plural form}}: '''homunculi''' {{IPAc-en|UK|h|ɒ|ˈ|m|ʌ|ŋ|k|j|ʊ|l|aɪ}} {{respell|hom|UNK|yuul|lye}}, {{IPAc-en|US|h|oʊ|ˈ|-}} {{respell|hohm|-}}, {{IPA|la|hɔˈmʊŋkʊliː|lang}}) is a small human being.<ref name="Britannica">{{cite web |title=homunculus |url=https://www.britannica.com/science/homunculus-biology |website=Britannica |access-date=3 February 2024}}</ref> Popularized in 16th-century [[alchemy]] and 19th-century fiction, it has historically referred to the creation of a miniature, fully formed human. The concept has roots in [[preformationism]] as well as earlier folklore and alchemic traditions.

The term lends its name to the [[cortical homunculus]], an image of a person with the size of the body parts distorted to represent how much area of the cerebral cortex of the brain is devoted to it.