Origin of Species
Quick Summary
Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, published in 1859, introduced the theory of evolution by natural selection. This theory posits that organisms with traits better suited to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce, passing those advantageous traits to their offspring. Over generations, this process leads to adaptation and the diversification of species. Darwin's work, based on extensive observations, revolutionized the understanding of life's origins and diversity, moving away from explanations of special creation. While Darwin's ideas profoundly impacted science and society, some interpretations, like social Darwinism, have been used to support harmful ideologies.1234567
Ask Britannica AI about this topic
Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.
cultural anthropology19th-century beginnings…Darwin had published his celebrated Origin of Species (1859). This concept, arising in strong debates, provided the starting point for anthropology.
Read More…Darwin had published his celebrated Origin of Species (1859). This concept, arising in strong debates, provided the starting point for anthropology.
Read More
biologyThe theory of evolution…in 1859 of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. In his book Darwin stated that all living creatures multiply so rapidly that if left unchecked they would soon overpopulate the world. According to…
Read More…in 1859 of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. In his book Darwin stated that all living creatures multiply so rapidly that if left unchecked they would soon overpopulate the world. According to…
Read More
history of scienceThe founding of modern biologyDarwin’s On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, published in 1859, brought order to the world of organisms. A similar unification at the microscopic level had been brought about by the cell…
Read MoreDarwin’s On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, published in 1859, brought order to the world of organisms. A similar unification at the microscopic level had been brought about by the cell…
Read More
evolutionThe concept of speciesHis On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection (1859) is a sustained argument showing that the diversity of organisms and their characteristics can be explained as the result of natural processes.
Read MoreHis On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection (1859) is a sustained argument showing that the diversity of organisms and their characteristics can be explained as the result of natural processes.
Read More
human evolution…Darwin published his monumental books On the Origin of Species (1859) and The Descent of Man (1871). Darwin never claimed, as some of his Victorian contemporaries insisted he had, that “man was descended from the apes,” and modern scientists would view such a statement as a useless simplification—just as they…
Read More…Darwin published his monumental books On the Origin of Species (1859) and The Descent of Man (1871). Darwin never claimed, as some of his Victorian contemporaries insisted he had, that “man was descended from the apes,” and modern scientists would view such a statement as a useless simplification—just as they…
Read More
evolutionCharles DarwinIn 1859 he published On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, a treatise establishing the theory of evolution and, most important, the role of natural selection in determining its course. He published many other books as well, notably The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation…
Read MoreIn 1859 he published On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, a treatise establishing the theory of evolution and, most important, the role of natural selection in determining its course. He published many other books as well, notably The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation…
Read More
Earth sciencesGeologic time and the age of EarthCharles Darwin’s Origin of Species (1859) offered a theoretical explanation for the empirical principle of faunal sequence. The fossils of the successive systems are different not only because parts of the stratigraphic record are missing but also because most species have lost in their struggles for survival…
Read MoreCharles Darwin’s Origin of Species (1859) offered a theoretical explanation for the empirical principle of faunal sequence. The fossils of the successive systems are different not only because parts of the stratigraphic record are missing but also because most species have lost in their struggles for survival…
Read More
philosophy of biologyNatural selection…the publication in 1859 of On the Origin of Species, by Charles Darwin (1809–82). Arguing for the truth of evolutionary theory may be conceived as involving three tasks: namely, establishing the fact of evolution—showing that it is reasonable to accept a naturalistic, or law-bound, developmental account of life’s origins; identifying,…
Read More…the publication in 1859 of On the Origin of Species, by Charles Darwin (1809–82). Arguing for the truth of evolutionary theory may be conceived as involving three tasks: namely, establishing the fact of evolution—showing that it is reasonable to accept a naturalistic, or law-bound, developmental account of life’s origins; identifying,…
Read More
philosophy of biologyNatural selection…Wallace’s urging, later editions of On the Origin of Species used a term coined by Herbert Spencer (1820–1903), survival of the fittest, in place of natural selection. This substitution, unfortunately, led to countless (and continuing) debates about whether the thesis of natural selection is a substantive claim about the real…
Read More…Wallace’s urging, later editions of On the Origin of Species used a term coined by Herbert Spencer (1820–1903), survival of the fittest, in place of natural selection. This substitution, unfortunately, led to countless (and continuing) debates about whether the thesis of natural selection is a substantive claim about the real…
Read More
rationalismFour waves of religious rationalism…the publication in 1859 of Origin of Species by Charles Darwin (1809–82). This book was taken as a challenge to the authority of Scripture because there was a clear inconsistency between the Genesis account of creation and the biological account of humans’ slow emergence from lower forms of life. The…
Read More…the publication in 1859 of Origin of Species by Charles Darwin (1809–82). This book was taken as a challenge to the authority of Scripture because there was a clear inconsistency between the Genesis account of creation and the biological account of humans’ slow emergence from lower forms of life. The…
Read More
social scienceNew intellectual and philosophical tendencies…of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, published in 1859, was of course great and further enhanced the appeal of the evolutionary view of things. But it is very important to recognize that ideas of social evolution had their own origins and contexts and that Darwin’s theory was fundamentally…
Read More…of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, published in 1859, was of course great and further enhanced the appeal of the evolutionary view of things. But it is very important to recognize that ideas of social evolution had their own origins and contexts and that Darwin’s theory was fundamentally…
Read More
animal social behaviorA historical perspective on the study of social behavior…however, it was Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species in 1859 that initiated the modern approach with its assertion that behavior, like morphology and physiology, evolves through natural selection. Darwin is also remembered for being the first to discuss sexual selection, the special form of natural selection that acts…
Read More…however, it was Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species in 1859 that initiated the modern approach with its assertion that behavior, like morphology and physiology, evolves through natural selection. Darwin is also remembered for being the first to discuss sexual selection, the special form of natural selection that acts…
Read More- human intelligenceMeasuring intelligence
…his uncle Charles Darwin in On the Origin of Species (1859), Galton believed that human capabilities could be understood through scientific investigation. From 1884 to 1890 Galton maintained a laboratory in London where visitors could have themselves measured on a variety of psychophysical tasks, such as weight discrimination and sensitivity…
Read More…his uncle Charles Darwin in On the Origin of Species (1859), Galton believed that human capabilities could be understood through scientific investigation. From 1884 to 1890 Galton maintained a laboratory in London where visitors could have themselves measured on a variety of psychophysical tasks, such as weight discrimination and sensitivity…
Read More
United KingdomReligion…religion came with Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species (1859). Yet the challenge was neither unprecedented nor unique. In 1860 Essays and Reviews was published; a lively appraisal of fundamental religious questions by a number of liberal-minded religious thinkers, it provoked the sharpest religious controversy of the century.
Read More…religion came with Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species (1859). Yet the challenge was neither unprecedented nor unique. In 1860 Essays and Reviews was published; a lively appraisal of fundamental religious questions by a number of liberal-minded religious thinkers, it provoked the sharpest religious controversy of the century.
Read More
Samuel ButlerWhen Darwin’s Origin of Species (1859) came into his hands soon after his arrival in New Zealand, it took him by storm; he became “one of Mr. Darwin’s many enthusiastic admirers,” and a year or two later he told a friend that he had renounced Christianity altogether.…
Read MoreWhen Darwin’s Origin of Species (1859) came into his hands soon after his arrival in New Zealand, it took him by storm; he became “one of Mr. Darwin’s many enthusiastic admirers,” and a year or two later he told a friend that he had renounced Christianity altogether.…
Read More
Thomas Henry HuxleyDarwin’s bulldog…played them up, using Darwin’s Origin of Species as a “Whitworth gun in the armoury of liberalism.” Unlike some contemporaries (such as Saint George Jackson Mivart) who sought a reconciliation between science and theology, he framed the debate over Creation and evolution in black-and-white, either/or terms and was unforgiving of…
Read More…played them up, using Darwin’s Origin of Species as a “Whitworth gun in the armoury of liberalism.” Unlike some contemporaries (such as Saint George Jackson Mivart) who sought a reconciliation between science and theology, he framed the debate over Creation and evolution in black-and-white, either/or terms and was unforgiving of…
Read More- Edward Charles Jeffrey
Charles Darwin’s Origin of Species led Jeffrey to interpret the form and structure of plants historically and to use comparative morphology and anatomy to provide evidence of specific evolutions. In 1899 Jeffrey reclassified all vascular plants into Lycopsida and Pteropsida; while later classifications have refined plant groupings,…
Read MoreCharles Darwin’s Origin of Species led Jeffrey to interpret the form and structure of plants historically and to use comparative morphology and anatomy to provide evidence of specific evolutions. In 1899 Jeffrey reclassified all vascular plants into Lycopsida and Pteropsida; while later classifications have refined plant groupings,…
Read More


