Human (Star Trek)
Encyclopedia
In the Star Trek
science fiction
universe, Humans/Terrans (Homo sapiens) are one of the races undertaking interstellar travel. Human beings were instrumental in the founding of the United Federation of Planets
. Although politically fragmented at the end of the 20th century, Humans underwent political unification, and made first contact with the Vulcan race
in 2063.
Human history in Star Trek
diverged from the real world in the 20th century. Most remarkably, the 1990s saw the emergence of the Eugenics Wars
where genetically engineered "supermen" such as Khan Noonien Singh
sought to conquer Earth. They failed, and Khan and his followers escaped to space aboard a cryogenic sleeper ship.
The 21st century saw social changes, unrest, and eventually World War III, a nuclear exchange that left the world factionalized. This period of Human history ended when Zefram Cochrane
invented the warp drive
, leading to first contact with the Vulcans
.
In the 22nd century, Human starships such as the Enterprise
explored the galaxy, leading to hostile contact with the Suliban
and Xindi and not quite friendly contact with the Klingon
s. Later in that century, Humans fought an interstellar nuclear war with the Romulan
s, a war that ended with the negotiation of a peace treaty by subspace radio. This treaty established the Romulan Neutral Zone.
Later on, Humans became a founding member of the United Federation of Planets
, and their history from that point forward is largely the history of the Federation.
Most species in the Star Trek universe appear humanoid
, because of the seeding efforts of the Ancient humanoids. In reality, it is because of the limitations of feasible television special effects, but in Star Trek: The Next Generation
, the story was added to in order to justify this limitation. Prior to this explanation, Gene Roddenberry
cited "parallel evolution
" as another potential explanation.
In the Borg
species classification code, Humans are Species 5618.
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation
episode "All Good Things...", Q
brings Jean-Luc Picard
to Earth, presumably to the point on the proto-Eurasian continent which one day would become France
, and shows the USS Enterprise-D
captain the "spark of life", which in this alternate timeline does not combine into what Q says will ultimately become Humanity. After the anti-time anomaly is sealed in the episode, it is further presumed that evolution, as shown by Q, resumed without incident.
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Chase
", Picard's archeology professor Galen, postulates and later proves the existence of a Proto-Humanoid race, which seeded the Milky Way Galaxy's class-M worlds with its genetic code, producing a tendency for sentients to develop into humanoid form, presumably including Humans.
In the Star Trek
episode "The Paradise Syndrome", Captain James T. Kirk
is rendered an amnesiac after encountering technology protecting a Human/Terran colony on a Class-M World in an asteroid belt. There Commander Spock
researches the obelisk containing the alien technology which injured Kirk, finding a record of a race (or collection of races) involved in "Preserving" cultures and species unique in the universe. The Preservers were a musically-languaged race, and with their superior technology, settled Native American tribes on this frontier world to preserve the Indians' unique culture, including that of the Delawares, of which Miramanee was Chief's daughter and medicine woman.
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Hide and Q
", Q states to Commander Riker
that the Human desire to explore and to learn, as well as their curiosity, will eventually lead Humans to a higher state of being. Q then went on to say that Humans might even surpass the Q.
While Terrans don't have any (physical) advantages compared to other species, like Vulcans who can become hundreds of years old and Klingon
s who are far more physically resilient, Terrans use their emotions to their advantage. Unlike Vulcans who preferably suppress emotion instead of embracing it as a part of themselves, emotion can drive Humans to go beyond boundaries which could be seen as unreachable by members of other species. Other sources argue that humans possess a high level of adaptability, which would explain why such a relative newcomer among space-faring species has "caught up" to other species which have explored space for centuries.
Ambassador
Soval once told Admiral Forrest that of all the species Vulcans had made contact with, Humans were the only one they couldn't define since they have the arrogance of Andorian
s and the stubborn pride of Tellarite
s; one moment they're as driven by their emotions as Klingons, and the next they confounded Vulcans by suddenly embracing logic.
Emotions such as hope can drive Terrans to perform amazing achievements; Vulcans needed 1.5 millennia to rebuild their nearly destroyed civilization from scratch, using only emotionless logic whereas Terrans only needed about a century (with help from the Vulcans). Empathy combined with love could be the very thing that unifies Humans into helping others.
The Borg Queen stated Humans to be a noble species when Captain Picard was willing to sacrifice himself in order to save his Second Officer, the android, Data
.
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
universe, Humans/Terrans (Homo sapiens) are one of the races undertaking interstellar travel. Human beings were instrumental in the founding of the United Federation of Planets
United Federation of Planets
The United Federation of Planets, also known as "The Federation" is a fictional interplanetary federal republic depicted in the Star Trek television series and motion pictures...
. Although politically fragmented at the end of the 20th century, Humans underwent political unification, and made first contact with the Vulcan race
Vulcan (Star Trek)
Vulcans, or sometimes Vulcanians, are an extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Star Trek universe who evolved on the planet Vulcan, and are noted for their attempt to live by reason and logic with no interference from emotion. They were the first extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek...
in 2063.
Human history in Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
diverged from the real world in the 20th century. Most remarkably, the 1990s saw the emergence of the Eugenics Wars
Eugenics wars
Eugenics wars may refer to:*In biopolitics, “eugenics wars” are sociopolitical conflicts characterized by coercive state-sponsored genetic discrimination and human rights violations such as compulsory sterilization of persons with genetic defects, the killing of the institutionalized and,...
where genetically engineered "supermen" such as Khan Noonien Singh
Khan Noonien Singh
Khan Noonien Singh, commonly shortened to Khan, is a villain in the fictional Star Trek universe. According to backstory given in the character's first appearance, the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Space Seed" , Khan is a genetically engineered superhuman tyrant who once controlled more...
sought to conquer Earth. They failed, and Khan and his followers escaped to space aboard a cryogenic sleeper ship.
The 21st century saw social changes, unrest, and eventually World War III, a nuclear exchange that left the world factionalized. This period of Human history ended when Zefram Cochrane
Zefram Cochrane
Zefram Cochrane is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe. Created by writer Gene L. Coon, the character first appeared in the 1967 Star Trek episode "Metamorphosis", in which he was played by Glenn Corbett. James Cromwell later played Cochrane in the 1996 feature film Star Trek: First...
invented the warp drive
Warp drive (Star Trek)
Warp drive is a faster-than-light propulsion system in the setting of many science fiction works, most notably Star Trek. A spacecraft equipped with a warp drive may travel at velocities greater than that of light by many orders of magnitude, while circumventing the relativistic problem of time...
, leading to first contact with the Vulcans
Vulcan (Star Trek)
Vulcans, or sometimes Vulcanians, are an extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Star Trek universe who evolved on the planet Vulcan, and are noted for their attempt to live by reason and logic with no interference from emotion. They were the first extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek...
.
In the 22nd century, Human starships such as the Enterprise
Enterprise (NX-01)
The Enterprise is a fictional starship in the science fiction television series Star Trek: Enterprise. It is commanded by Captain Jonathan Archer.-History:...
explored the galaxy, leading to hostile contact with the Suliban
Suliban
The Suliban are a starfaring race in the fictional Star Trek universe, seen throughout the series Star Trek: Enterprise. A Suliban sect known as the Cabal served as the show's primary antagonists in the first and second seasons....
and Xindi and not quite friendly contact with the Klingon
Klingon
Klingons are a fictional warrior race in the Star Trek universe.Klingons are recurring villains in the 1960s television show Star Trek: The Original Series, and have appeared in all five spin-off series and eight feature films...
s. Later in that century, Humans fought an interstellar nuclear war with the Romulan
Romulan
The Romulans are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek universe. First appearing in the original Star Trek series in the 1966 episode "Balance of Terror", they have since made appearances in all the main later Star Trek series: The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager...
s, a war that ended with the negotiation of a peace treaty by subspace radio. This treaty established the Romulan Neutral Zone.
Later on, Humans became a founding member of the United Federation of Planets
United Federation of Planets
The United Federation of Planets, also known as "The Federation" is a fictional interplanetary federal republic depicted in the Star Trek television series and motion pictures...
, and their history from that point forward is largely the history of the Federation.
Most species in the Star Trek universe appear humanoid
Humanoid
A humanoid is something that has an appearance resembling a human being. The term first appeared in 1912 to refer to fossils which were morphologically similar to, but not identical with, those of the human skeleton. Although this usage was common in the sciences for much of the 20th century, it...
, because of the seeding efforts of the Ancient humanoids. In reality, it is because of the limitations of feasible television special effects, but in Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
, the story was added to in order to justify this limitation. Prior to this explanation, Gene Roddenberry
Gene Roddenberry
Eugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry was an American television screenwriter, producer and futurist, best known for creating the American science fiction series Star Trek. Born in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry grew up in Los Angeles, California where his father worked as a police officer...
cited "parallel evolution
Convergent evolution
Convergent evolution describes the acquisition of the same biological trait in unrelated lineages.The wing is a classic example of convergent evolution in action. Although their last common ancestor did not have wings, both birds and bats do, and are capable of powered flight. The wings are...
" as another potential explanation.
In the Borg
Borg (Star Trek)
The Borg are a fictional pseudo-race of cybernetic organisms depicted in the Star Trek universe associated with Star Trek.Whereas cybernetics are used by other races in the science fiction world to repair bodily damage and birth defects, the Borg use enforced cybernetic enhancement as a means of...
species classification code, Humans are Species 5618.
Possible evolution of humans
The theories of Human development put forward in Star Trek took several different paths:In the Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
episode "All Good Things...", Q
Q (Star Trek)
Q is a fictional character who appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager, as well as in related products. In all of these programs, he is played by John de Lancie....
brings Jean-Luc Picard
Jean-Luc Picard
Captain Jean-Luc Picard is a Star Trek character portrayed by Patrick Stewart. He appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and the feature films Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek Nemesis...
to Earth, presumably to the point on the proto-Eurasian continent which one day would become France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and shows the USS Enterprise-D
USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)
The USS Enterprise is a 24th century starship in the Star Trek fictional universe and the principal setting of the Star Trek: The Next Generation television series...
captain the "spark of life", which in this alternate timeline does not combine into what Q says will ultimately become Humanity. After the anti-time anomaly is sealed in the episode, it is further presumed that evolution, as shown by Q, resumed without incident.
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Chase
The Chase (TNG episode)
"The Chase" is the 20th episode in season 6 of the science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation.-Overview:Four competing expeditions — Federation, Klingon, Cardassian, and Romulan — attempt to solve a genetic puzzle that proves to be the key to why Star Treks version...
", Picard's archeology professor Galen, postulates and later proves the existence of a Proto-Humanoid race, which seeded the Milky Way Galaxy's class-M worlds with its genetic code, producing a tendency for sentients to develop into humanoid form, presumably including Humans.
In the Star Trek
Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
episode "The Paradise Syndrome", Captain James T. Kirk
James T. Kirk
James Tiberius "Jim" Kirk is a character in the Star Trek media franchise. Kirk was first played by William Shatner as the principal lead character in the original Star Trek series. Shatner voiced Kirk in the animated Star Trek series and appeared in the first seven Star Trek movies...
is rendered an amnesiac after encountering technology protecting a Human/Terran colony on a Class-M World in an asteroid belt. There Commander Spock
Spock
Spock is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by Leonard Nimoy in the original Star Trek series, Spock also appears in the animated Star Trek series, two episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation, seven of the Star Trek feature films, and numerous Star Trek...
researches the obelisk containing the alien technology which injured Kirk, finding a record of a race (or collection of races) involved in "Preserving" cultures and species unique in the universe. The Preservers were a musically-languaged race, and with their superior technology, settled Native American tribes on this frontier world to preserve the Indians' unique culture, including that of the Delawares, of which Miramanee was Chief's daughter and medicine woman.
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Hide and Q
Hide and Q (TNG episode)
"Hide and Q" is the 10th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation.-Overview:The Q returns to tempt Commander Riker into joining the Continuum.-Plot:...
", Q states to Commander Riker
William Riker
William Thomas Riker, played by Jonathan Frakes, is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe primarily appearing as a main character in Star Trek: The Next Generation...
that the Human desire to explore and to learn, as well as their curiosity, will eventually lead Humans to a higher state of being. Q then went on to say that Humans might even surpass the Q.
While Terrans don't have any (physical) advantages compared to other species, like Vulcans who can become hundreds of years old and Klingon
Klingon
Klingons are a fictional warrior race in the Star Trek universe.Klingons are recurring villains in the 1960s television show Star Trek: The Original Series, and have appeared in all five spin-off series and eight feature films...
s who are far more physically resilient, Terrans use their emotions to their advantage. Unlike Vulcans who preferably suppress emotion instead of embracing it as a part of themselves, emotion can drive Humans to go beyond boundaries which could be seen as unreachable by members of other species. Other sources argue that humans possess a high level of adaptability, which would explain why such a relative newcomer among space-faring species has "caught up" to other species which have explored space for centuries.
Ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
Soval once told Admiral Forrest that of all the species Vulcans had made contact with, Humans were the only one they couldn't define since they have the arrogance of Andorian
Andorian
Andorians are a fictional race of humanoid extraterrestrials created by D. C. Fontana for the Star Trek universe. They are native to the icy M-class moon Andoria , which orbits a blue, ringed gas giant. Definitive traits include their blue skin, a pair of cranial antennae, and white hair...
s and the stubborn pride of Tellarite
Tellarite
Tellarites are a fictional species from the planet Tellar from the Star Trek television show.Though not used in a great number of episodes, they are one of the founding races of the show's United Federation of Planets, to which Earth belongs....
s; one moment they're as driven by their emotions as Klingons, and the next they confounded Vulcans by suddenly embracing logic.
Emotions such as hope can drive Terrans to perform amazing achievements; Vulcans needed 1.5 millennia to rebuild their nearly destroyed civilization from scratch, using only emotionless logic whereas Terrans only needed about a century (with help from the Vulcans). Empathy combined with love could be the very thing that unifies Humans into helping others.
The Borg Queen stated Humans to be a noble species when Captain Picard was willing to sacrifice himself in order to save his Second Officer, the android, Data
Data (Star Trek)
Lieutenant Commander Data is a character in the fictional Star Trek universe portrayed by actor Brent Spiner. He appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and the feature films Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek...
.